County has hands on localizer funding

SANDPOINT — Bonner County has finally received funding to replace crash-damaged navigation equipment at Sandpoint Airport.

But it remains unclear how quickly the new dual-frequency localizer and the antenna array can be installed.

County commission Chairman Cary Kelly said the county hopes to get the new system installed this fall.

“We want to get that done,” he said on Wednesday.

But the time frame for installation depends on how quickly it takes for the manufacturer to build the equipment.

“It’s not something that can be pulled from a shelf,” he said.

The antenna array was destroyed by an incoming airplane that crashed off the end of the runway last September. The pilot was charged with operating an aircraft while under the influence of prescription antidepressants.

Donald Moss Muirhead, a 56-year pilot from Orem, Utah, ultimately entered an Alford plea to the charge, meaning he did not admit guilt, but conceded that he could have been convicted of the misdemeanor offense if the case went to trial.

The system that was damaged aids pilots in landing during adverse weather conditions. Pilots could rely on GPS to help guide landings, although the localizer gave them a lower altitude to decide whether to land or not.

The lack of a localizer was of particular concern to businesses at the airport which rely on air traffic.

Some pilots were passing over Sandpoint Airport due to the dimmed-out localizer.

“It’s a hot topic at the airport. There was talk of litigation. There was talk of people filing a Part 16 action with the FAA against the county for not maintaining the equipment,” said Commissioner Mike Nielsen, referring to a formal complaint with the Federal Aviation Administration.

Nielsen said the process of obtaining funding was slowed by a reinsurance adjuster who felt the bid was too high.

Officials managed to break the stalemate on Monday by stating it would sue the insurance company if the county was sued for not providing the equipment.

A $375,435 was in the county’s hands on Wednesday.

The destruction of the equipment was a curse with a touch of blessing.

The 18-year-old localizer is no longer being manufactured and was in danger of being shut down by the FAA because the signal it emitted had steadily degraded over the years because of hangar development on the northwest side of the airport.

The new localizer, however, will overcome that issue.

“If there’s a silver lining that’s it because it’s going to be something much better than we had,” said Nielsen.