Temple’s airport takes off with $6.8M redo

TEMPLE – Draughon-Miller Central Texas Regional Airport will undergo major reconstruction improvements in coming months.

James Construction Group LLC began reconstructing runway 02/20, which is designed for single- or twin-engine aircraft. The runway is approximately 4,800 feet. James Construction’s contract for the total project is $6.8 million.

An engineering contract for $411,534 was awarded to Parkhill, Smith & Cooper Inc. The majority of the project will be funded through grants, with the City of Temple’s share being $760,000.

Runway 02/20 also is used for crosswind training, flight training and helicopter operations. Central Texas College students use runway 02/20 to perform aircraft approaches.

Larger aircraft that fly into and out of Draughon-Miller generally use runway 15/33, but sometimes use runway 02/20 as a backup.

Once James Construction finishes reconstructing runway 02/20, crews will work on the runway’s ramp and taxiways.

Aircraft parking ramp reconstruction will include the addition of concrete pads for larger jet traffic. The project is expected to be complete in April 2014.