Runways, like roads, are assets.
And my Mom taught me to never sell an asset, unless you absolutely must.
Can you imagine your home town looking to close one-third of the roads in your town so they can replace them with storage buildings?
That’s exactly what Battle Creek Executive Airport (KBTL) Aviation Director Philip Kroll is considering with one of the airport’s three runways. While not yet a done deal, the simple fact that Kroll presented mock-ups of the airport with 5R/23L removed at the March 11, 2025 Airport Advisory Board meeting is chilling.
Why remove 5R/23L at KBTL?
Kroll reported to the board the FAA has informed the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) that the 15-year-old runway is not eligible for federal funding. The FAA told MDOT that KBTL operations need to top 150,000 per year to qualify for federal dollars.
And according to FAA Airport Data and Information Portal (ADIP) reporting, effective as of May 15, 2025, “RWY 05R/23L EXTSV CRACKING & VEGETATION.” The runway is in poor condition and is not being taken care of.
Kroll reported the airport spent $100,000 in runway crack repair last year. If there are no federal grants available for the shorter runway when it comes time for major rehab of 5R/23L, it will be up to the City of Battle Creek, owner of the airport, to cough up or find the funds.
Designated Pilot Examiner and Author Jason Blair wrote an op-ed we shared with General Aviation News readers on May 20, 2025. The focus of Jason’s op-ed was safety.
Which checks out, being a DPE.
“When an airport has a parallel runway, it can better separate traffic of different speeds and handle more aircraft in a traffic pattern at the same time,” wrote Blair in his op-ed. “This allows more operations to be completed with better aircraft separation on busy days.”
In response to Blair’s op-ed, Joel Gibbons wrote on our Facebook page, “I live under the approach end and there is a need. When I was still a student we would get 10-15 mile finals before the second runway was built. Summer is just ramping up, maybe the decision makers need to sit up in the tower for a few days.”
And Joseph Schiffel adds, “Remove a runway to replace with more hangars, which ostensibly means more airplanes on the airfield to use an already saturated runway. Gee, that sounds like a winning idea!”
On the topic of the number of operations, Pete Borozan commented on the General Aviation News website, ”This is my home base. The number of takeoffs and landings handled at this airport needs to be looked at in context. There are a lot of days in southwest Michigan when there is very limited or no flying due to weather for probably 98% of the pilots who use the field. Take the remaining ‘flyable days’ and divide by the number of flights and you have a VERY busy airport on good flying days. Having WMU students sit on the ground waiting to take off impacts their actual training time negatively. Closing 23L / 5R will drastically change the really good current functionality of this airport. Bad idea!”
Like most things in life, nuance and context are needed to understand just about any situation.
Runways, like roads, are precious and vital.
I hope the community and city leaders can be convinced it would be shortsighted to relinquish the asset that is 5R/23L at KBTL.
If reason won’t prevail, then feel free to take my Mom’s advice. It served her very well throughout life.
