AUBURN AL- Auburn University reportedly needs more than $5
million from the state to rebuild its flight facilities. University trustees
will consider Friday whether to initiate a project by seeking architects to
design a new aviation education facility at Auburn University Regional Airport.
The proposed facility would include flight simulators, workforce training space
for the aerospace and aviation industries, and space for related research, University
President Jay Gogue told Bentley in a letter requesting Bond Commission funds.
-Fly Auburn.org image-
It would replace the 60-year-old facility and an adjacent double-wide trailer that currently houses the university's aviation program. Those facilities must be razed within a year or two, according to the university, to make room for an FAA-required taxiway at the airport according to news reports.
The new facility could expand the university's aviation offerings to include
airframe and power-plant training, as well as unmanned-aerial-vehicle training
to be provided in conjunction with the state's two-year college system, he
wrote.
Alternatively, Gogue sought Bentley's help identifying other sources of funding
that may be available, if funding through the bond commission is not.
Auburn offers Alabama's only four-year aviation degree. -Staff report, FMI:Auburn
President Gogue's letter to Gov. Bentley