FAA grants awarded for upgrades at Montgomery-Gibbs, Brown Field airports

San Diego has received federal grants totaling nearly $4 million to make improvements at the Montgomery-Gibbs Executive and Brown Field airports, officials said Friday.

The Federal Aviation Administration granted the funds for the two city-owned airports to help them “remain in optimal condition and provide safe, reliable and efficient transportation,” a statement from the city reads.

“This federal funding is critical to addressing immediate infrastructure needs at both of the city’s airports, helping to prevent delays in project design and construction while ensuring our facilities remain in top condition,” said Economic Development Deputy Director and Chief of Airports Jorge Rubio.

Two of the grants, totaling $2.8 million, are to redesign Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport’s secondary runway, taxiways and terminal apron. The apron is the paved area outside the airport’s terminal where local and visiting aircraft are parked, loaded and fueled.

Conditions at the airport came under scrutiny in May when an airplane bound for Montgomery-Gibbs crashed in a community of Navy housing east of the facility in the foggy pre-dawn darkness.

Six people died when the Cessna slammed into the ground, seriously damaging one home and sparking a fire that destroyed several parked vehicles.

At that time, the National Transportation Safety Board noted that lights on a runway at Montgomery-Gibbs were not operational and a weather information service that should have been available was out due to a power surge.

The city quickly challenged aspects of the NTSB’s early statements about the crash, saying the airport had confirmed that the runway lights were operational at the time of the incident, despite a FAA notice cited by the NTSB that had included a warning about them.

The third grant announced Friday, more than $1 million, will reimburse a consultant in the final design phases to rehabilitate taxiways at Brown Field.

“A project like this would not be possible without the advocacy of San Diego’s congressional delegation,” said Walt Bishop, Mayor Todd Gloria’s director of government affairs. “Their commitment to delivering financial resources will not only enhance our airports, but drive opportunities for business, jobs and community growth locally.”

According to the city, the grants announced Friday will cover 95% of the design costs, with the rest of the funds coming from revenue the airports generate from routine business and other funding.

No general fund contributions from the city are being used for the projects.