Columbia Regional Airport runway work on schedule

Repairs to the runway at Columbia Regional Airport are on schedule, according to city leaders.

The airport closed last week after passengers and pilots had concerns about a bump on runway 13-31. The runway is typically used as a secondary runway but commercial flights starting using it after the main runway was shut down April 1 for a rehabilitation project.

Complaints from airlines about the bump led the city to shut the runway down this week.

On Thursday, crews were laying pavement to smooth the bump that caused the safety concerns in the first place.

The city estimates the cost of the construction will be between $400,000 and $500,000. Once the work is completed the city will file for a grant from the FAA, which would pay up to 90 percent of the costs.

City spokesman Steve Sapp said the city has a good relationship with the FAA. When asked if he had concerns about getting the grant, he said the city’s most important concern is passengers’ safety.

“We want to make sure that whenever a pilot or an airline brings up a safety concern, you know, it’s our duty to make sure that we react to that and react appropriately,” he said.

Sapp said the city will be transparent about the process of getting funding from the FAA.

Since the runway closed Tuesday, the city has received many phone calls and emails from passengers. The closure happened after regional carriers for United and American Airlines suspended flights to and from Columbia because of safety concerns.

“I know this has been a bit of a bump, if you will, for this. But we really appreciate what our passengers have done and we know this has caused hardships for many of them,” Sapp said.

Jennifer Mattingly and her family were affected by the flight cancellations. She said communication about the closure was limited to social media. She provided updates to some of her friends coming home from an international trip at the airport in Denver who did not use social media.

She and her husband had to pay extra to get from Kansas City to Columbia after their flight was changed.

“We ended up paying, I want to say, $170 or so for a rental car for just like 12 hours,” she said.

Mattingly and her husband said the delay on the trip was an inconvenience for both them and their young son.

“It was about 2:30 in the morning when we actually got back to Columbia and we were expecting to be home by 8:30 or 9,” she said.

She said her experiences at COU have made her rethink using the airport.

“Going forward, I would be hesitant honestly. Just because of the, every time we’ve used, I’ve used the airport there’s been issues,” she said.

Laura Skaer also had to rebook her flight because of the cancellations, but her overall experience was less of a pain, especially with the airline.

“He just said I need to talk to my supervisor to find out how to do this since I was on miles,” she said. “And then he did that, and yeah, no charges. No extra charges. It was really painless.”

Skaer also had to pay more for a rental car, but she said she did not expect to get reimbursed for it.

“I’m moving and I’m having my car shipped. So I was going to be renting a car for about a week anyway,” Skaer said. “And it turns out it’s a little cheaper to rent it in Kansas City and turn it in in Columbia than it is to rent in Columbia.”

Skaer has a pilot’s license. She said she saw a video of passengers bouncing as if the plane was hitting a speed bump, but at high speed.

“I understand the safety concerns and I think it’s better they get this done now because it sounds like the construction on the main runway’s going to last through the summer,” she said.