The Daily Inter Lake: Airport Gets Federal Grant for Upgrades

Glacier Park International Airport will receive nearly $4 million for critical construction and maintenance project, U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont. announced Friday.

The $3,986,340 from the Federal Aviation Administration will go toward a full-scale reconstruction of the 3,500-foot cross runway and upgrades to the runway’s lighting system.

“The construction won’t have any impact on commercial flights,” Airport Director Cindi Martin said. “We’ll begin work on Tuesday and it should be wrapped up by the end of October.”

Knife River won the construction bid for the project. The smaller, secondary runway to undergo construction is used for smaller aircraft.

The grant is part of an annual upgrade program that has given $32 million to the airport for improvements, Martin said. Last year’s grant went toward the terminal remodeling and the new south entrance road.

“Glacier Park International Airport provides critical transportation services to the entire Flathead Valley,” Daines said in a press release. “This grant will ensure the airport is able to serve the region’s growing transportation needs and provide a reliable air service for the thousands of tourists who visit Glacier National Park and the Flathead Valley every year.”

This year, the airport set a new commercial passenger record for the month of June at 21,280 passengers.

The allocation comes a week after Daines announced another $2.8 million in federal funding for six rural Montana airports in Circle, Glendive, Columbus, Lewistown, Sidney and West Yellowstone.