BUCKHANNON — The Buckhannon-Upshur Airport Authority’s Upshur County Regional Airport has recently received two major grants for COVID-19 relief, as well as infrastructure improvements.
Congressman Alex Mooney announced a $151,198 grant from the Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration for the B-U Airport on April 30. This money will be used for infrastructure improvements such as their Runway Rehab project. This improvement is necessary to maintain and assure safe operations as required by the FAA, according to Secretary Rich Clemens. The project in total is $169,860.
The Federal Aviation Administration also awarded the regional airport $20,000 as part of a COVID-19 package to help support airports with a loss of revenue to manage operations, stated Clemens. This aid is part of President Trump’s newly created CARES Airport Grant Program. Buckhannon-Upshur Airport is one of 23 airports in the state to receive the grant.
The airport is also in the process of building a new terminal. “It is nearly done… It is not fully furnished yet and we are still waiting on some network connections so we can move our business office out of the courthouse basement to the airport,” Clemens reported. However, the terminal is open for meetings, as well as passengers. “We are pleased to offer the new building for the community,” concluded Clemens.