The Wilmington morning star., 1941-01-01
AIRPORT RUNWAYS
PAVING MAY BE
FINISHED MAR.
Continued from Page One)

grading stretches for the runways,
laying a rock base and in general
getting ready for the asphalt pour
ing.
c. T, Walker, superintendent on
the project, says that if the wealth.
err is decent in the next several
weeks that the job of paving the
runways will be completed by
March 1.
Bluethenthal Airport hasn't been
exactly a political football, but it
has been buffeted aplenty in dis
cussions. Its history isn't very long
maybe Is years-but at least
half of that time there has been
almost continuous work going on
at the field.
Land Rugged
In the first place the land was
rugged, there we're a lot of holes
and stumps in the ground and on
top of that keeping the field
drained was a big rroblem.
But all that's over now, as I
discovered yesterday. The holes
have been smoothed over, the
stumps are gone and the terrain
is drained so well that you could
kick up dust.
Through WPA aid the county is
now building three runways that
triangle across the field. There
is an east-west runway that is 5000
feet long and 100 feet wide; there
is a north-south runway that is
2,150 feet long and 100 feet wide;
and there is a northeast-southwest
runway that measures 5000 by 100
feet.
When three runways are COM
pleted, the present hangar-erect-
ed during the winter of 1929-3O-
will be moved 900 feet southwark
and a new apron will be built.
Beacon lights r to be installed,
and if additional money is forth
coming when all this is through a
new hangar will be built.
This latest work is costing ap-
proximately 5000, 900, which repre-
sents the federal contribution, the
county commissioners share, and
the credits allowed the county for
use OF the rock quarry.
There r 100 men employed on
the project right now-part work.
ing at the field and part mining
at the county quarry.
One Completed
One runway has been completed
as far as the rock base is con-
cerned and now awaits the pour
ing of asphalt. Walker estimated
that the runways will be complete
~ rocked" by the early part of
February. And it looked yesterday
if there will be a new airport
oy the first of May.
Walker said that 100 carloads of
topping" for the runways is to
arrive Friday. They will unload
and spread about eight carloads a
lay. So it appears safe to say
hat if the weatherman is kind that
his job wont take so very much
onger to finish.
1t would be hard to say just how
much money has been spent to
make the airport serviceable-but
t would run into several hundred
thousands if all was counted.
Addison Hewlett, Sr., chairman
# the New Hanover county board
Il commissioners, said last night
hat he couldn't give the figure,
tut a check of WPA and other
governmental relief agencies files
n the various projects set Up at
ne field in the past seven years
you'd give n a rough guess
The present, airport was Started
ack in 1926. The old airport was
ocated at Audubon but when the
ew Wrightsville Beach highway
1as built it cut directly across the
leld and that left the many avia-
on enthusiasts. here grounded.
But a group of young filters, in
luding Warren Pennington, the
resent manager of Bluethenthal
irport, went before the county
commissioners and asked that the
-ordon, road site be used for an
n field. The county owned the
md at that time, so the request
as granted. The late Frank Ross
od Postnaster w r Dosher at