Airport gearing up for taxiway upgrade, as it completes terminal

Lawton Fort Sill Regional Airport is ramping up for a new major renovation project, as it winds down a three-year project to modernize the airport terminal.

Airport Director Barbara McNally said field work and testing have been completed for a preliminary engineering report on the taxiway realignment project, and she expects to meet virtually with engineers next week to discuss the project. McNally said she wants some members of the airport’s governing board to be involved to help discuss options on exactly how the project will be done, saying input from the Lawton Metropolitan Area Airport Authority is important because decisions made will allow engineers to proceed with design plans.

The project focuses on plans to rebuild a taxiway on the north end of the airport complex, to replace damaged concrete. Taxiway F — which links Taxiway A (the primary taxiway) to the runway — has patches of deteriorated concrete and the Federal Aviation Administration has recommended new pavement. While Taxiway F is needed for large aircraft (including military aircraft), most cannot use it because of weight restrictions that were implemented due to deteriorating concrete.

The proposed solution is to straighten out the taxiway to align with Taxiway A, while eliminating two shorter taxiways.

McNally said airport officials don’t yet know exactly when construction would begin because they still are identifying funds to cover the cost. The FAA has already identified some funding, airport officials said.

McNally also said contractors remain on track to complete the most visible upgrade to airport amenities by April 2.

Herring Construction work crews are done with the Envoy Air area, the ticket counter and work space used by the American Airlines regional carrier at Lawton-Fort Sill Regional Airport. That work was included in the renovation phase that focused on the north end of the terminal, where Envoy/American Airlines, TSA luggage screening and other terminal tenants are located.

McNally said completion of the Envoy area means that tenant should be moving back to its work space within several weeks. Completion there is allowing contractors to focus on other interior work, including the space where car rental agencies are located. McNally said those tenants will be temporarily relocated to another site inside the terminal, until their area is complete. This stage also will include installation of terrazzo tile.

“It will be messy,” McNally said, of work that will be disruptive but necessary for completion of the $15.3 million terminal upgrade. “It’s a little painful now.”

Upgrades to the terminal exterior also are nearing completion, with installation of a new facade and fewer entry points to increase energy efficiency.

Ward 5 Councilman Allan Hampton and Ward 4 Councilman George Gill are interested in the terminal completion date because of repairs planned for King Road. King Road is the airport’s access and exit point from South 11th Street, and Hampton said last year he wants it upgraded through the City of Lawton’s mill and overlay program, to complete the airport modernization project.

Gill, chairman of the City Council’s Streets and Bridges Committee, said that committee is preparing to identify 76 new roads for mill and overlay, and he expects King Road to be named a priority. That could mean a potential start in May, Hampton said.

McNally was thankful. She said the road directly in front of the terminal was already badly rutted and that situation now is much worse because of the work associated with the terminal renovation.

Herring Construction began work in late 2023 on the last stage in an upgrade that includes everything from a new front entrance to new carousel-style baggage claim. This final phase began Summer 2024, coming after Herring Construction finished the secured passenger holding area, work that included separate corridors for deplaning and departing passengers, a larger TSA screening area, and a covered passenger boarding gate.