Lone Star Executive Airport in Conroe celebrated the opening of its new extension of runway 14-32 during a March 23 ceremony that featured Montgomery County Judge Craig Doyal and members of the Montgomery County Commissioners Court.

The new 1,500-foot runway extension, constructed by Webber LLC, accommodates larger aircrafts and caters to more Montgomery County residents, said David Fulton, Texas Department of Transportation Aviation Director.

The extension brings the airport runway to 7,500 feet. Also included in the project was the construction of a new taxiway on the west end of the airport.

“This will now provide a capability to handle larger aircrafts and allow them to fly longer ranges to other cities,” Fulton said. “It will also bring an economic development impact to Montgomery County as it will allow more people to fly.”

Fulton said the engineering and construction of the runway extension projects was about $20 million. The funding for the project came from the Airport Improvement Program from the Airport Improvement Administration. The program provides grants to airports to make capital improvements.

“The Texas Transportation Commission approved the grant and then the [Texas Department of Transportation]-Aviation division managed the grant and construction,” Fulton said. “There had to be shown [by Lone Star Executive Airport that] there was a need for construction and now, because of the extension, larger aircrafts can operate at the airport.”