Wittman runway project moves forward

A $10.5 million runway reconstruction project at Wittman Airport in Oshkosh is moving forward.

This week, the Winnebago County Board approved its portion of funding to reconstruct Taxiway A at the airport. As part of the overall plan, the Federal Aviation Administration will pay $9.45 million for the project, with the Wisconsin Bureau of Aeronautics and the county each paying $525,000.

Built in 1967, Taxiway A is the airport’s main north-south runway throughout the year and becomes a second north-south runway during the Experimental Aircraft Association’s AirVenture fly-in convention each July.

The taxiway has surpassed the usual 30- to 50-year lifespan and needs to be rebuilt by 2021 to comply with minimum industry and federal standards, according to a report written by Jim Schnell, the airport director for Wittman Airport.

In March, Gov. Tony Evers approved $400,000 in state funds to develop a master plan for Wittman Regional Airport. According to Lucas Ward, an airport development engineer with the Wisconsin Department of Transportation Bureau of Aeronautics, the project will guide the airport’s development for the next 20 years.

The planning project is scheduled to begin this summer and should be complete in 2021.