# Ross County Airport

The Ross County Airport (ICAO: KRZT, FAA LID: RZT) is a publicly owned, public use airport located 6 miles northwest of Chillicothe in Ross County, Ohio. The airport sits on 350 acres at an elevation of 725 feet.
The airport has a number of attractions for local aviation enthusiasts. A local chapter of the Experimental Aircraft Association is based at the airport and holds events for locals. One event involves a local Ford Tri-Motor aircraft, which is made available for rides.

## History

The airport was built in the 1960s when Ohio Governor Jim Rhodes declared each county in Ohio should have an airport.
The airport had an expansion and upgrade in 2011 that saw its main taxiway extended. The taxiway surface was also redone, its design was changed to meet FAA standards, and trees and buildings were removed to make room.

## Facilities and aircraft

The airport has one runway, designated as runway 5/23. It measures 5405 x 100 ft (1647 x 30 m) and is paved with asphalt.
For the 12-month period ending September 7, 2021, the airport had 53,655 aircraft operations, an average of 147 per day. This included 92% general aviation, 7% military, and 1% air taxi. For the same time period, 25 aircraft were based at the airport: 24 single-engine airplanes and 1 jet airplane.
The airport has a fixed-base operator that sells fuel – both avgas and jet fuel – and offers services such as catering, deicing, aircraft detailing, rest rooms, showers, a pilot lounge, snooze rooms, and more.

### Facility Upgrades

The airport received over $100,000 to rehabilitate a taxiway to maintain the structural integrity of the aircraft as well as to acquire additional land to enhance protection for the airport's approaches.

## Accidents and incidents

* On September 28, 1996, a Mitsubishi MU-2B was substantially damaged during a precautionary landing at the Ross County Airport. During climbout from the airport, one of the aircraft's engines lost power. The pilot shut down the engine but was unable to maintain altitude afterward and had difficulty maintaining directional control. After touchdown at the airport during the precautionary landing, the aircraft veered off the runway and came to rest in a ditch. An examination of the left engine revealed that the torque sensor housing had failed due to fatigue, resulting in a loss of drive to the fuel pump. The investigation also found that the pilot did not comply with engine failure procedures and required air speeds. Factors relating to the accident were fatigue failure of the left torque sensor and gear assembly, which resulted in the loss of engine power; a failure of the manufacturer to comply a respective service bulletin; and the pilot's improper use of the flaps and reverse (single-engine) thrust.
* On January 19, 2001, a Piper PA-46 was substantially damaged during an aborted take-off from Ross County Airport. The pilot aboard said that it took an atypically long time to reach rotation speed. When he attempted to rotate the aircraft, it did not lift normally, and his copilot reported the plane did not feel right. As he was only three to four feet off the ground with little runway remaining, the pilot turned to avoid trees and retarded the throttle. The aircraft touched down, slid, turned, and came to rest upright facing the runway. The probable cause of the accident was found to be the pilot's improper pre-flight planning and failure to follow the published checklist procedures, which resulted in ice and snow not being removed from the wings prior to take-off.