Waco TSTC gets $2.5M for airport taxiway repairs

WACO – The Texas Department of Transportation Commission (TxDOT) has approved $2.5 million to complete the last of a four-phase, multiyear project to renovate runways and taxiways at the Texas State Technical College airport (TSTC).

The overall project for improvements at the 2,000-acre airport cost about $6.5 million, with TxDOT funding 90 percent of the cost and TSTC covering the remaining 10 percent.

The fourth phase of the project will resurface and renovate several of the taxiways at the airport. The third phase of the project, which cost about $1.9 million, resurfaced the 8,600-foot runway.

The number of flights increased to 53,000 last year, up from 38,000 two years ago. About 31 percent of those flights are military-related.

Military aircraft from San Antonio, Abilene and Wichita Falls use the TSTC airport in training flights because of the long runway and because the airport is not as congested as those in larger cities.

Also, L3 Communications, a huge defense contractor, is located near the airport and uses the longer runway there to accommodate the large planes it works on.

The shorter, 7,000-foot runway is used for the technical college’s flight school and aviation maintenance programs. TSTC plans to begin a helicopter training program this fall.