Airport upgraded, more to come

A plane taxis out the runway preparing to take off from the Mustang Beach Airport in Port Aransas. Facilities at Mustang Beach Airport could expand significantly if negotiations between the City of Port Aransas and the Texas General Land Office work out.

The city is negotiating a new land lease with the GLO to increase the size of the airport and to add amenities that a survey has shown pilots desire.

If a new lease is signed, the airport property would expand to include 23.2 more acres.

The added acreage could be where new airport hangars and other development would occur under a partnership between the city and Texas Aviation partners of Austin.

Several recent improvements already accomplished at Mustang Beach Airport brought the oncequiet little island airport into direct competition with larger fields such as T.C. McCampbell Airport in Ingleside and Aransas County Airport in Rockport.

The improvements include AWOS, an automatic weather service for pilots that will give local weather with a phone call, and a navigation system that's almost as good as the high-dollar Instrument Landing System used by commercial airports. The new system will let fliers navigate to within 265 feet of the ground in cloudy or rainy weather; previously they could only legally descend to within 1,500 feet off the ground in inclement weather.

That's important to people who might contemplate flying to Port Aransas for a vacation or for a weekend, because they can now leave Dallas or San Antonio and come directly to Port Aransas.

The Port Aransas City Council has made airport improvements a priority and has given the facility its own section in the city's comprehensive plan.

City staff is working with Texas Aviation Partners to develop a far-reaching airport layout plan that will move Mustang Beach Airport beyond the Texas Department of Transportation aviation system and onto the Federal Aviation Administration funding list. The FAA oversees domestic flying activities.

As aviators have become more familiar with Mustang Beach Airport, support for the improvements has grown.

Additions that are in the planning stage are new bathrooms, a locker room with showers, rental cars, lodging information, a courtesy telephone and other amenities.

The airport currently is ready to welcome visitors who fly in for a month, a weekend, or just for lunch.