Franklin County airport plans to build another hangar

CHAMBERSBURG  -- The owner of the Franklin County Regional Airport plans to build another hangar at the general aviation airport in Greene Township.

The hangar is being designed as the Susquehanna Area Regional Airport Authority gets approvals. Greene Township Supervisors on Tuesday approved a conditional use for the hangar. The 93-acre airport at 3506 Airport Road is in a light industrial zoning district.

Marshall Stevens, SARAA deputy executive director, said the airport gets calls from people looking for hangar space and has a waiting list. It's "very premature" to discuss a timeline. 

“We don’t have the complete funding package in place,” he said. The package is likely to include a grant or low-interest loan.

The airport currently rents space at its three hangars, which hold about 18 aircraft, according to Stevens.

The plan calls for demolishing a double-wide building that houses the airport’s fixed-base operations. A 5,000-square-foot hangar and 800-square-foot office/pilot’s lounge would be built at the same spot. A 2,400-square-foot equipment building also would be replaced.

The conditional use permit was the first step in getting township approval of the land development plan.

SARAA is committed to continually improve the airport, Stevens said.

SARAA recently completed installation of an automated weather system that gives weather information to pilots.

In the past five years SARAA has gotten $850,000 in state grants for a turnaround, or staging area, and for a lane connecting the two ends of the runway so aircraft do not taxi on the runway.

Business and recreational fliers use the airport. The main tenant is the Chambersburg Skydiving Center.

SARAA also owns the Harrisburg International Airport, Gettysburg Regional Airport and Capitol City Airport on the west shore of Harrisburg.

Jim Hook, 717-262-4759