Wildland firefighting airbase to be built at Colorado Springs Airport
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) - The City of Colorado Springs and the US Department of Agriculture announced plans to build a permanent airtanker base to support wildland firefighting efforts across the Rocky Mountain region. The base will be built at the Colorado Springs Airport.
"We enthusiastically join our partners at the Colorado Springs Airport and the USDA Forest Service in the regional response to increasing forest fire activity," said Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers. "We want to do everything we can to protect our beautiful state and our residents. As wildland firefighting continues to be a priority for western states, we continue to embrace our leadership role and we look forward to completion of this vital asset. This base is something we've been working on for quite some time, and I want to commend our airport staff for their work in helping the project become a reality."
Earlier this morning the Forest Service signed a lease agreement with the airport. Under that agreement, both entities will share the costs for construction and maintenance, which is currently budgeted at $20 million. The United States Congress awarded the Forest Service funding for the project through the 2018 Omnibus Bill. The City of Colorado Springs is providing additional funding through a partnership agreement.
The one-and-a-half-acre base will initially house six reloading pits for any type of contracted airtanker, including large airtankers that can hold more than 5,000 gallons of retardant. The arrangement will also allow several aircraft to reload at the same time, reducing the total number of flights needed to fight a wildfire.
The base's ramp will be located near the airport's main runway. During the winter months the Colorado Springs Airport will use it as a de-icing area for commercial aircraft.
At this time the base is expected to serve a 600-mile radius, which includes Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Kansas and Nebraska. The base will also provide support to parts of Montana, Idaho, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa, and Missouri.
The groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for this spring. Construction on the base and ramp is set to begin in the summer, and is scheduled to be completed sometime in 2021.
