Pike County Airport (Ohio)
Airport in Waverly, Ohio
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pike County Airport (ICAO: KEOP, FAA LID: EOP)[a] is three miles northeast of Waverly, a village in Pike County, Ohio.[1] The FAA's National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 categorized it as a general aviation facility.[3]
Pike County Airport | |||||||||||
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Pike County Airport | |||||||||||
| Summary | |||||||||||
| Airport type | Public | ||||||||||
| Owner | Pike County Airport Authority | ||||||||||
| Serves | Pike County, Ohio | ||||||||||
| Location | Waverly, Ohio | ||||||||||
| Time zone | UTC−05:00 (-5) | ||||||||||
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−04:00 (-4) | ||||||||||
| Elevation AMSL | 661 ft (201 m) | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 39°10′01″N 082°55′41″W | ||||||||||
| Website | Pike County Airport | ||||||||||
| Map | |||||||||||
| Runways | |||||||||||
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| Statistics (2023) | |||||||||||
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| Source: Federal Aviation Administration[1] | |||||||||||
Many U.S. airports use the same three-letter location identifier for the FAA and IATA, but this facility is EOP to the FAA and has no IATA code.[4]
History
The airport was funded largely by a bill signed by Governor James Rhodes, who believed every county in Ohio should have an airport.[5]
Efforts to build an airport began in January 1966 with the establishment of an airport authority.[6] A 54-acre (22 ha) site in an industrial park where a Thompson Industries factory was under construction was selected in June.[7] However, the location was shifted to a location three miles north of Waverly by early November.[8] A lawsuit objecting to the purchase of property for the airport was filed in February 1967.[9] A price for the just over 67 acres (27 ha) was set the following month.[10] The county accepted a contract from the Murray Construction Company to build a 3,500-foot (1,100 m) runway in June 1967.[11] Although the runway had yet to be paved by February 1968, several airplanes had already landed on it.[12] A plan to cooperate with Ross County on the airport was proposed in March 1968. It would see that county's $100,000 state grant being used to pay to extend the runway to 4,500 ft (1,400 m) or 5,000 ft (1,500 m).[13] The airport was dedicated on 19 October 1969.[14]
After initially proposing to lengthen it to 5,600 feet (1,700 m) the year before, the airport announced in April 1989 that it would be receiving a state grant to extend the runway by 700 ft (210 m).[15][16] It received another grant the following year to install runway lighting.[17]
A 3,240-square-foot (301 m2) administration building was nearly complete in September 1995.[18] Another effort to extend the runway to 5,400 feet (1,600 m) began in 1997.[19]
Facilities
Pike County Airport covers 70 acres (28 ha) at an elevation of 661 feet (202 m). Its one runway, 7/25, is 4,899 by 75 feet (1,493 x 23 m).[1]
In the year ending August 31, 2023, the airport had 2,112 aircraft operations, average 40 per week: it was nearly 100% general aviation and <1% military. Ten aircraft were then based at the airport, all airplanes: 9 single-engine and 1 multi-engine.[1]
Accidents and incidents
- On 13 August 1969, a Beechcraft Baron crashed and burned at the airport while landing in fog, injuring the three occupants.[20]
- On 4 August 1996, a Cessna 150 crashed into trees due to fog while attempting to land at the airport.[21]