The automated weather observation system (AWOS) at the Clintonville Municipal Airport is set to be upgraded after the $83,490 project was approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker.
The majority of the funding for the project will come from the FFA, which is providing $79,315. The City of Clintonville will contribute $2,088 from the 2011 capital budget, while the State of Wisconsin will provide $2,087.
According to Craig Butler, project manager with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (DOT), the project will enhance safety by providing pilots with continuous, real-time local weather information. The Clintonville Municipal Airport AWOS is part of the state's 38 AWOS units that the National Weather Service uses to analyze and forecast weather conditions across the country. The upgraded equipment will allow the FAA to continue publishing aircraft instrument approach procedures for the airport that have lower aircraft landing minimums, enhancing safety and providing greater access to the airport.
The project is scheduled to be completed by summer of 2011.
"We had one of the first AWOS systems that was ever installed at a smaller airport here in Clintonville," said Airport Manager Mike McCord. "Because we were granted an AWOS system many years ago, the DOT recommended we replace the AWOS system with these entitlement funds this year. We had originally planned to do this a few years down the road, but we're glad to be able to do it now. It's a needed upgrade, and it won't set us back financially."
Facilities at the Clintonville Municipal Airport include the 4,600-foot primary runway, the 3,300-foot secondary runway, and a 2,040-foot turf airstrip. There are some 40 aircraft based at the airport and approximately 8,000 aircraft take-offs and landings occur each year.