A new roof is coming to the old terminal building at the Macon County Airport, a step closer to finishing a refurbishment project and creating a new meeting space complete with a flight simulator.
Approval of the $114,758 contract with Carolina Builders took place at the Airport Authority’s Sept. 30 meeting. The contract included the building of a new roof for the facility, replacing old insulation and reinstalling a gas line.
The project has been a subject at Airport Authority meetings for months and serves as a capstone for a series of improvements at the old terminal building, which has been turned into a meeting space for businesses and other organizations and an on-site teaching space for Franklin High School’s aviation program. The building has space for a coffee bar and a flight simulator, the latter of which is at the building but has yet to be installed. Airport Manager Sabrina Crone said the roof construction is projected to take about 90 days, so the airport will be able to begin furnishing the new space around the beginning of the new year.
The Macon County Schools Career and Technical Education program will use the simulator for aviation students to train and practice. CTE director Allison Guynn, science teacher Matt Kolodzik and aviation instructor Scott Hanna attended the meeting to discuss the aviation program and how changes at Franklin High School and the airport have and will continue to improve opportunities for students.
Guynn said aviation students are mostly juniors and seniors, but sometimes younger students get involved. Kolodzik said these students sometimes decide aviation isn’t for them when they go up for the first time, but the realization helps direct them toward a more appropriate path.
Hanna said students can, occasionally, be taken up in a flight – provided they keep their grades and attendance up. The school is “constantly looking for ways” to supplement the aviation program, making the new meeting space and simulators at the airport a helpful tool. Hanna said the school system has been very generous to install additional simulators at the high school.
The simulators, combined with the aviation coursework, help prepare students to have all the paperwork required for students to secure a private pilot’s license, Hanna said. He added many students will get their pilot’s license once they turn 16.
“At this time, we are excited about the growth in our aviation program and look forward to increasing exposure to more students in the future,” Guynn said. “We are excited to see how the program can grow with valuable community partnerships.”
Airport Authority member Jack Horton said the ability to use the meeting space for students was an important justification for N.C. Sen. Kevin Corbin when the airport requested funding for the project. Horton was glad to see the program developing.