Airport director: FAA inspection found six minor issues; airfield deemed 'safe and effective'

Airport Director Christopher Marshall told the Clovis Civil Aviation Board that an April 10 Federal Aviation Administration inspection found six minor discrepancies but concluded the airfield is "safe and effective," and he outlined repairs and procedural changes the airport will pursue.

Marshall said the inspector dug to find problems but found the field generally sound. The report identified maintenance and procedural items including a partially inoperative PAPI glideslope system, faded taxiway signs, a missing safety placard at the self-service fuel pump, lapsed fire-inspection records that have since been corrected, and gaps in required refresher training for airfield movement-area personnel.

On the PAPI (precision approach path indicator) equipment, Marshall said one PAPI unit is out of service, the other has been turned off at the inspector's recommendation, and the airport has contacted Bixby (an Albuquerque firm that installed the system) for a repair quote. Marshall said the airport will pursue a contractor to perform planned maintenance inspections (PMI) and an on-call arrangement for repairs.

Marshall reported additional follow-up steps: ordering replacement taxiway signage, producing a safety placard to post at the self-serve fuel pump, and instituting annual refresher training tied to gate-card renewal so personnel must refresh their movement-area training when they update credentials. He also said wildlife-management review and training will be updated and submitted to the FAA inspector for approval before staff retraining.

Marshall described other operational items in his report: the airfield generator did not auto-start during a recent outage and the control panel replacement and shelter are estimated at nearly $100,000; the airport is seeking additional estimates. The ARFF (Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting) Striker vehicle is currently stored in the FBO hangar pending a better storage solution. The airport is pursuing a capital improvement project with the FAA to build a new ARFF station that could be dual-bayed and potentially staffed 24/7.

Marshall also summarized March fuel sales and usage: reported totals included about $15,000 in Avgas sales and approximately $70,000 in Jet A sales by the FBO; total fuel gallons reported were 2,300 gallons of Avgas, 13,300 gallons of Jet A, and 18,400 gallons sold to a customer identified as Key Lime, for a combined total of about 34,000 gallons and gross sales reported at $144,191. He said weather-related outages and a fire earlier in the month reduced some charter traffic and affected sales and operations.

Several board members asked operational questions, including whether the gate that had been stuck open could be redesigned; Marshall said he would obtain cost estimates for redesign and present them to the board. No formal votes were taken on inspection follow-up; Marshall said staff will pursue contractor quotes and funding as needed and keep the board informed.