Redmond Airport resumes flights after 2-day closure

(Update: Redmond Airport resumes flights)

Redmond Municipal Airport’s airfield reopened for flights Wednesday morning after a two-day closure caused by heavy snow and a part that went out in the airport’s Instrument Landing System.

“RDM recommends passengers contact their air carrier directly for the most current flight information before traveing to the airport terminal,” the announcement said.

“Commercial passenger airlines will post their flight information regarding arrivals, departures, delays, and cancellations via flight tracking applications, such as the one available on RDM’s website, www.flyrdm.com. ”

Airport operations crews worked around the clock clearing the 150-foot-wide, 7,000-foot-lonng primary runway in order resume air service operations.

The equipment used by operations staff for snow and ice removal includes: Two snow plows one is 22 feet wide, the other is 19 feet wide; three sweeper brooms, one is 18 feet wide, the other two are 20 feet wide; two snow blowers that move snow at a rate of 5,500 tons per hour; three 20-foot- wide snow pushers; two front end loaders, two trucks with liquid deicer, one with a 15,000-gallon tank and 75-foot-wide wide boom, the other holds 800 gallons with a 50-foot wide boom; and one truck that holds dry chemical deicer with a 50-foot-wide spreader.

“Safety is always the No. 1 priority at RDM,” the airport said. “Allow extra time to drive, park and safely walk into the terminal during snow and ice conditions.”

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Earlier story

For the second day in a row, the Redmond Airport was closed Tuesday to all arriving and departing flights. Currently the airport is scheduled to reopen Wednesday at 9 a.m. — but that’s still weather-dependent, as well as a key replacement part arriving and being installed.

The reason planes aren’t able to land or take off right now has to do with a piece of equipment called the instrument landing system, or ILS, that stopped working in the heavy snowfall.

The job of the ILS is to provide highly accurate radio signal navigation aid to the aircraft cockpit. This way, pilots can conduct an instrument landing, versus a visual one, when they’re unable to perfectly see the runway

But after this week’s record-breaking snowfall, the ILS stopped working.

Airport Security Coordinator Nicole Jurgensen said a part of the system needs to be replaced — and without it, it’s not safe for planes to take off or land in this kind of weather.

“Since storms are forecast to be in our area for the next little while, most airlines would hesitate to send aircraft here if we don’t know that it’s working, just because they know that there’s a storm pattern in our area,” Jurgensen said.

Airport officials are waiting on a replacement piece from the Federal Aviation Administration, along with some FAA workers to install the piece. They’re hoping to get that done Tuesday evening or early Wednesday morning.

Officials say typically, this piece of equipment can handle the snow.

“It was just one of those coincidental fluke things,” Jurgensen said. “I have not seen this. I have not seen this in any of our previous storms when any of that equipment was affected by snow before. I think that was just a fluke, coincidental thing.”

The operations crew has been working around the clock to keep the runway clear so planes can take off and land — as soon the ILS is up and running.

So check online before you head to RDM. You san see when flights resume at their flight status page.