Angelina County Airport runway extension approved

LUFKIN, Texas (KETK) – Our news partner, KETK, reports that the Angelina County Commissioner’s Court has approved a contract to extend the Angelina County Airport’s longest runway to 6,000 feet.
The updated plan was unanimously approved by the court.

The $7,800 contract with KSA Engineers will use money from the COVID Cares Fund to extend Runway 725 by 600 feet from 5,400 feet to 6,000 feet. At the Angelina County Commissioner’s Court meeting on Wednesday, Angelina County Airport manager, Gary Letney explained they had originally planned to extend the runway by 1,600 feet but they now want to update that plan to do the extension in sections. This shorter, 600-foot extension is still long enough to allow the airport to start accommodating larger airplanes like military planes.

“Planes that we do get in now, they can’t take full loads of people or fuel. So, on some very hot summer days, some of the jets do have to find an alternate airport and this would prevent that from happening…even just the 600 feet would do that for us.” said Gary Letney.