DATELINE: July 12, 2014  – – – BREAKING NEWS!

New Board member – – – and 2nd VP elected:

Colonel Ira Cline, (left) USAF, Commander of AFROTC Detachment 505 at NMSU, in Las Cruces, NM, has been elected to the FASF Board of Trustees.  In a special election, he was chosen to replace just retired Trustee, Cathy Myers, current President of the New Mexico Pilots Association (NMPA).  We will miss Cathy and wish her Godspeed with her NMPA responsibilities.  See more here about Colonel Cline’s background to see why he’s such a valuable new asset on our Board.  Dr. Kathleen Martín was elected to replace Cathy as 2nd VP.

 FAS Airfield Real Estate “Buy an Acre Campaign” Contract Signed:

At a Special Meeting of the FASF Board of Trustees on Saturday, July 12, 2014, the long awaited 1916 Airfield real estate contract was finally signed by the sellers of the 160 acre parcel and the Trustees of the FASF, bringing a close to over nine months of intense negotiations.  This parcel will bring the total acreage owned by the FASF to approximately 220 acres in all, enough property to enclose the old 1916 Aerodrome’s Flight Line, landing area, Memorial Monument, and the planned vintage (pre WWII) aircraft museum.  President Lambart observed, “Now we can begin to draft our plans for the 2016 Centennial Celebration, the Replicate 1916 Flight Line, the Monument – and the FASF Museum.  We have much to celebrate – – – and a huge, but exciting task before us!”

DATELINE: June 25, 2014  – – – Columbus Annexes FASF!

The Village of Columbus New Mexico’s Board of Trustees has just voted – unanimously – to accept the petition by the FASF and the sellers of the new 160 acre parcel to be annexed to the city.

The above satellite photo of Columbus shows the village and, marked in red, the existing 60 acre FASF airfield property combined with the new 160 acre parcel now being acquired with the proceeds of the “Buy an Acre” campaign. The outlined airfield is the the same area from which the FAS flew it missions almost a century ago. The entire combined two parcel area delineated above in red has just become an integral part of the Village of Columbus, New Mexico.

From now on the FASF Airfield, or the “Aerodrome” as it is sometimes known, will be within the city limits of Columbus.  Before, located in rural county land, it was subject to the state’s old “open range” laws, which meant that cattle ranchers could legally have their herds grazing on the Airfield property, presenting the danger of collisions between operating aircraft, especially landing, with randomly grazing cattle.  The Open Range laws do not hold effective inside city limits, so it will no longer be necessary to erect a costly fence around the airfield just to exclude free ranging cattle from it. The new status of being within city boundaries will also substantially facilitate the drafting of new FAA modeled airport zoning ordinances, thereby preventing the erecting of tall hazardous structures on the West side of the field, endangering both aircraft and civilians on the ground.

Above: Columbus Mayor Phillip Skinner receives FASF Annexation Petition from Dr. Kathleen Martin, First Aero Vice President, in ceremonial photo taken on July 1, 2014 at the City Hall in Columbus.

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