By Eric Millirons
special correspondent

Approximately 30,000 vehicles pass the sign that shows the entrance to the Chesterfield Airport on a daily basis. The local spot records about 82,000 take-offs and landings each year that seemingly go unnoticed from passer-bys except for the occasional whir of propellers or the soft rumble of corporate jets. While many may not realize the impact that this airport has on the big picture, Cliff Burnette, Virginia Director of Air Services, said, “Chesterfield Airport is a tremendous asset to the county and the national air transportation system.”

Cloistered behind a large stand of evergreen trees, off of State Route 10, just north of Route 288, the airport is one of Chesterfield’s truly hidden economic gems. It ranks fourth in the number of planes based at a Virginia airport. While state studies have shown that its economic impact is in the millions of dollars, there are more discernable factors that display its importance. Looking only at the personal property tax paid on the 130 or so planes based at Chesterfield, the result is over $400,000 for the county’s General Fund coffers. When this information is coupled with the employment generated by the county and Dominion Aviation employees, numbering in excess of 100 with over 90 percent of them being county residents, its worth to our economy becomes even more evident.

Unlike Richmond International, this airport was not originally a military training field that was turned into a locally operated commercial air transportation endeavor. This one had to be built from the ground up. The county opened the airport in 1973 with a runway of 3,300 feet. Due to increasing demand, the runway was extended to 5,500 feet, and a further extension of 500 feet is possible in the not-too-distant future, according toChesterfield Airport Manager Tom Trudeau.

The Chesterfield Airport, designated as FCI, is categorized as a general aviation reliever airport for Richmond International. Trudeau explained, “We want Richmond to do well, for when they do well, we do well.”

Trudeau, who serves as the county’s main representative, is responsible for the infrastructure and maintenance of the airport’s physical facilities. As a reliever airport, it serves as an origin or destination for many smaller aircraft, and sometimes slower aircraft, that frequent the Richmond area. The system is like having a separate lane of traffic for these smaller craft in order for commercial service airports to provide scheduled commercial passenger flights for the usually larger aircraft. To be certain, Chesterfield is not truly in competition with Richmond International, as they provide different services for the air transportation business.

On the other side – operations – Dominion Aviation is the fixed base operator, providing necessities such as fuel, aircraft mechanical repair, charter and other vital services. Mike Mickel is the hands on president of that company, which he started some 25 years ago.

Anyone who has traveled by air can realize the importance of having a charter service available for the corporations that call Richmond home. Commercial flight may add time, where charter is a utility for when time is money. When referring to his charter aircraft, he calls them, “[a] fleet of efficient business tools, frequently enabling the business traveler to be home at night and productive at work the next day. They are not luxuries; they are necessities that allow for direct air transport to distant locations.”

Mike Mickel, President of Dominion Aviation, stands next to his recently purchased 2008 Beechcraft Premier 1A jet. | photo by Eric Millirons

Mickel also speaks with pride about the airport and the services that are there. “Dominion Aviation has 14 mechanics that can work on a variety of planes, from the small single engine propeller, to the turbo prop, to the corporate jet.”

As a result, Chesterfield Airport has the largest staffed retail maintenance facility in Central Virginia.

There are other aspects of the airport that identifies its importance to the area and state. While many see the Virginia State Police helicopter flying over Midlothian Turnpike, most are unaware that the Virginia State Police Aviation Unit is based at the Chesterfield Airport. Similarly, when one hears the Civil Air Patrol providing assistance overhead, they’re within minutes of “how the crow flies” from its headquarters of the Virginia Wing of the Civil Air Patrol at the airport.

Should there be a desire to spread your own wings, the Chesterfield Airport can accommodate that dream of flight as well. Heart of Virginia Aviation provides flight instruction on-site, and like Dominion Aviation has staff located within the terminal building. Students can learn, as pilots appreciate, the airport’s ILS (instrument landing system) that gives aircraft both horizontal and vertical information.

One feature, essential for a growing airport such as this, is the on-site fire and safety protection. A short distance from the airport terminal is Fire Station No. 15; this is not your typical fire station. While it does contain vehicles and apparatus available at other stations in the county, it also has one very special piece of firefighting equipment known as “P-19”, this vehicle is designed specifically for fighting aircraft fires and getting through a fire to get the people out. Having a trained and equipped aircraft firefighting unit at the ready, while hopefully is never needed, displays a commitment to the safety of the users of this facility.

Aside from all the services offered at the Chesterfield Airport, there is one undeniable advantage. The airport is in close proximity to Route 288 which affords a “convenience of access”, as Mickel puts it, to the entire region.

Yes, Chesterfield Airport is a definite spoke in the air transportation wheel. Though it may be hidden from view, all of Chesterfield County can be proud of this first-rate general aviation airport. It is not only an air transport gem, but as Mickel so aptly stated, “It is a thriving economic machine.”

For additional information on the Chesterfield Airport, county government, go to http://www.chesterfield.gov/ManagementServices/AviationServices/
For additional information concerning the Fixed Base Operator of Chesterfield Airport, go to http://www.dominionaviation.com/index.htm