Airport Business - 13

MILITARY PROCUREMENT
Two V-22 Osprey take off at
Havasu Air Center.
HAVASU AIR CENTER

Aircraft is directed at the
Havasu Air Center.
HAVASU AIR CENTER

that the entire community benefits."
Brown added, "That tower being
a DoD, especially if you notice over
the last decade, the constant threat
to contract towers and the funding
and appropriations to those, we're
very fortunate that's tied into the air
station. And so that cost to have such
a phenomenal air traffic control center
is to me is one of the advantages to
being co-located with a great military
installation."
For general equipment usage, though,
there is little to no sharing between the
two entities.
"We don't use their equipment,"
said Brown. "Our fixed-base operator
takes care of all of those larger ground
service equipment and requirements that
our tenant or transient users need. The
Airport does not borrow from the MCAS
Yuma visiting aircraft line or from their
maintenance groups."

they provide through the various letter of
agreements (LOAs) and understandings
as we operate our separate entities on the
same air fields."
Brown said as a result of sharing space
with the air station, most everything at
the airport is military-centric, though
the airport still has a very active general
aviation and commercial operation.
Being shared-use with the air station also
provides benefits to Yuma International
that might not otherwise be available
to them. Notably, the airport has four
runways, the smallest measuring in at
5,700 feet and the longest at 2.4 miles.
The size allows for a wide range and
type of aircraft to land at the airport,
leading to diversification and business

development at the airport that would
otherwise not be available.
An advantage to the airport is one
of the few places where it overlaps with
Air Station - the air traffic control tower.
"All of the air traffic control services
are provided by Marine Corps Air
Station Yuma," McShane said. "They're
either uniformed Marines or Department
of Defense (DoD) civilians that operate
our air traffic control tower, to include
our combined en-route radar approach
facility. Those ATC services are all
provided by us, and as a result, Yuma
International provides that general
aviation capability on their side of the
airfield to include a commercial air
carrier operation with American Airlines

The Procurement
Process
With little overlap between the two,
it only makes sense that the Marine
Corps Air Station Yuma's procurement
process would differ greatly from Yuma
International's process. Where Yuma
International is able to budget and buy
like other airports, Air Station Yuma
is subject to DoD budgets and federal
oversight. It can take years to make sure
the air station has the equipment it needs
to complete its missions - from paper
clips to FOD sweepers.
"There are many procurement
vehicles in DoD and depending on
the dollar amount associated with the
specific piece of equipment and what
it's used for directs the type of funding

APRIL 2020 \ AVIATIONPROS.COM / 13
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Airport Business

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