Flights resume at ice-hit Redmond Airport

Redmond Municipal Airport reopened for flights Friday afternoon, about 21 hours after it was closed due to freezing rain that worsened snow and ice conditions on the runways.

“What we’re looking at is what we’re calling a ‘braking actions report,'” airport Director Jeffrey Tripp said Friday. “That’s just determining when airplanes are taking off and landing, do they have enough traction?”

In an announcement the airport said, “Airport operation crews will monitor airfield pavement surfaces to ensure they continue to meet stringent safety standards,” after having spent much of the day “diligently removing snow from the runways.”

The closure left many travelers delayed or scrambling to find other ways to get into or out of the region.

Passengers were encouraged to check with their airline for flight information. Airline contact information can be found on the airport’s website and current flight status information is at this page: http://www.flyrdm.com/?Flight-Status

Those arriving at the airport are advised to prepared for slick snow and ice conditions. Precautions should be taken for walking to and from the parking lot as well as walking to the plane. Drivers are encouraged to use caution. Allow extra time when traveling to the airport.

On Friday, not many passengers were at the airport — and those that were, were renting cars or taking the bus to Portland.

“We knew it was closed, because they did tell us at 7:30 this morning,” saidJames Manafas, who was traveling from Australia. “So we still came here, because we needed to drop off the car and rearrange our plans. So we thought, ‘Well, we get on (Highway) 97 and drive to Portland.”

Staff at RDM had been working tirelessly to get the airport opened up again.

“Two runways, associated taxiways, thousands upon thousands square yards of asphalt to try to maintain to just get back to normal standards,” Tripp said. “Plus the parking lots, plus the access roads, plus the rental car lots. We have a lot of real estate to try to maintain with a relatively small staff.”

Tripp said this was only the second time in 25 years the airport had to shut down due to snow and ice.

“The snow wasn’t a problem for us. But when we got to the freezing rain and the ice, that becomes far more problematic,” Tripp said.