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Thun Field Runway Shutdown Forces Flight Schools and Tenants to Shift Operations
Pierce County Airport-Thun Field closes its runway for four months starting late July for a $7.18 million federally funded reconstruction project.
The gist
Thun Field's runway closure in Washington halts fixed-wing flights for four months, pushing flight schools and businesses to relocate temporarily.
Pierce County Airport-Thun Field in South Hill, Washington, is facing an essential four-month runway closure starting July 27, as a $7.18 million federally funded project begins to replace its aging runway. The airport’s manager Trent Smith explained that Runway 17-35 has reached the end of its useful life and requires reconstruction to maintain operational status. The project aims to provide a new runway with a lifespan of 20 to 30 years, avoiding costly emergency repairs and securing access for pilots, businesses, tenants, and emergency services reliant on the airport.
The closure, though anticipated by airport users, has created significant challenges for the local aviation community. For months, tenants, flight schools, and various businesses based at KPLU have deliberated on how to continue operations while the runway is out of service. The airport sponsor, Pierce County, had discussed runway replacement plans for years, often postponing them due to competing priorities, which led some stakeholders to doubt the project would ever materialize within their tenure at the airport.
The project scope includes more than just the runway resurfacing. The runway will maintain its current length of 3,651 feet but will be widened from 60 to 75 feet. Additionally, significant upgrades will be conducted, such as rehabilitating the airport hangar’s electrical infrastructure, enhancing drainage systems, installing new precision approach path indicator (PAPI) lighting, realigning and repaving two taxiway connectors, and repositioning the windsock, segmented circle, and wind tee. To improve pilot safety and weather monitoring, obstructive trees and brush blocking pilot sightlines and the Automated Weather Observing System (AWOS) will also be removed.
This comprehensive work is funded by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grant of $7.18 million. Groundwork began with hangar electrical rehabilitation starting July 24. However, during the runway shutdown, fixed-wing operations will be suspended entirely.
Alternative scheduling ideas were considered, including doing the reconstruction in winter months, working in phases to keep part of the runway operational, conducting night work, or using the adjacent taxiway as a temporary runway. All these were rejected due to practical constraints such as weather delays, safety concerns, runway length requirements, and budget limitations. Smith emphasized that the entire project has to be completed in a single, uninterrupted daytime period to meet these constraints.
During this period, while fixed-wing aircraft cannot operate from the runway, the airport grounds and hangars remain accessible. Hangar tenants must continue their monthly rent payments despite the closure, which has caused some dissatisfaction. The county expects rent increases in 2027, maintaining the lease agreements during the face of construction. Local businesses relying on fly-in traffic expressed concerns about the financial impact, with some fearing they may not survive the extended closure, particularly after pandemic-related hardships.
Flight schools at KPLU, known to be among the busiest training airports in the Seattle area, are actively adjusting to this disruption. Safety in Motion, Spanaflight, and Clover Park Technical College (CPTC) have arranged to relocate temporarily to Olympia Regional Airport (KOLM), approximately 27 nautical miles southwest. Spanaflight will also operate an additional temporary satellite at Auburn Municipal Airport. CPTC, which houses its aviation campus at KPLU, obtained FAA acknowledgment to operate under a Part 141 certificate at the alternate location. CPTC's Dean Claire Korschinowski explained that while ground school remains at the South Hill campus, flying training will take place at Olympia for approximately 47 enrolled students.
The relocation represents a considerable logistical undertaking but was necessary to maintain continuity of pilot training and aviation maintenance education programs. Despite the challenges, the flights and maintenance sectors at Thun Field have been preparing for the shutdown for years. Larger on-site operators like Spencer Aircraft have also arranged to keep parts of their operations at the airport and have relocated some functions, such as avionics, to nearby airports to sustain service during the closure.
Frequently asked questions
- Why is Thun Field's runway closing for four months?
- The runway at Pierce County Airport-Thun Field is closing to replace the aging runway with a federally funded $7.18 million reconstruction project designed to extend the runway's lifespan by 20 to 30 years and improve safety features.
- How are flight schools at Thun Field adapting to the runway closure?
- Flight schools including Safety in Motion, Spanaflight, and Clover Park Technical College are temporarily relocating operations to Olympia Regional Airport and Auburn Municipal Airport to continue pilot training during the closure.
- Will tenants at Thun Field airport receive rent adjustments during the runway closure?
- No, the county has stated that lease agreements remain in effect and tenants must continue paying rent despite the runway closure; rent increases are expected in 2027.
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Expert Details Future of Drone Markets, AI Safety, and Workforce Training in UAS Sector
Global Aviation Round-Up from Aircraft Value Intelligence (AVN) James McDanolds, Director of Uncrewed Technology Programs at the Sonoran Desert Institute. (Photo: Sonoran Desert Institute) Editor's Note: This week, John Persinos conducted a video interview with James McDanolds, Director of Uncrewed Technology Programs at the Sonoran Desert Institute. James oversees education and workforce development for the rapidly evolving unmanned aircraft sector. The following article is a transcript edited for clarity and concision. John's questions are in bold . To watch the full video Q&A, click here . Investors are pouring capital into autonomous aviation, advanced air mobility (AAM), and AI-enabled flight systems, but many business models remain unproven. From your vantage point, James, which UAS market segments appear most likely to deliver sustainable returns over the next few years, and which ones may be attracting more enthusiasm than economic reality? I would point to the more established applications, the ones people already recognize as long-term staples. Those are the areas where drones are already being used as essential tools, especially for critical infrastructure inspection. That includes oil and gas, transmission lines, substations, roadways, and bridges. In these industries, drones improve safety while providing fast access to critical information. If companies can’t quickly assess the condition of an asset or determine what maintenance is needed, the costs can be enormous, particularly in the energy and infrastructure sectors. One segment that’s somewhere in the middle is drone delivery. It’s been around for about a decade, but it’s now gaining real traction as the technology matures and practical use cases become clearer. People often think of delivery in metropolitan areas, but rural applications may be even more compelling. Imagine a blizzard that leaves roads impassable for hours or even days. Do you delay urgently needed medications, or do you send them by drone? Those are the kinds of real-world applications that are driving adoption. As for advanced air mobility, it’s still in its infancy. Companies like Joby are making tremendous progress, and it’s impressive how far that technology has come after years of development. But for now, AAM remains an early-stage, niche market. AI is increasingly finding its way into mission planning, detect-and-avoid systems, predictive maintenance, and autonomous decision-making. Where do you believe artificial intelligence genuinely improves safety and operational efficiency, and where should human judgment remain firmly in the loop? I think the key is implementing AI in stages. We’re still in the early phases of AI adoption, especially in aviation. People sometimes forget that commercial aviation has relied on automation for decades through autopilot systems. But autopilot doesn’t handle every phase of flight. It handles the portions that have been thoroughly tested and proven reliable after tens or even hundreds of thousands of flight hours. We should apply that same philosophy to AI in uncrewed aircraft systems. It’s still aviation. Even if no one is physically aboard the aircraft, operators still have a responsibility to protect people and property on the ground. That means there’s always an elevated level of risk, and human oversight remains essential. The industry often talks about a shortage of qualified drone professionals. Based on your experience building training programs, what skills are employers struggling to find today, and how should educational institutions adapt their curricula to prepare graduates for increasingly autonomous flight operations? There are really two groups entering the industry. One consists of people starting their first career in drones. The other includes experienced professionals who are incorporating drones into careers they already have. Both groups can benefit from better training. One misconception is that earning a Part 107 certificate is enough to land a job. It’s an important baseline, but it’s only a starting point. Part 107 doesn’t require a practical flight examination, and employers know that. They’re going to ask, “Can you demonstrate real flight skills? How would you handle this situation? Can you operate safely under real-world conditions?” In many industries, though, flying the drone is only part of the job. The real value comes from collecting data and turning that information into actionable decisions for the business or client. As commercial aviation and military aviation both accelerate investment in autonomous systems, how do you see the relationship evolving between traditional crewed aircraft and uncrewed platforms? Are we moving toward true integration, or will these remain largely separate ecosystems for the foreseeable future? That’s a great question, and it’s difficult to answer because none of us can predict the future. In the near term, once Part 108 is fully implemented and we begin seeing fleets of uncrewed aircraft operating alongside traditional aviation in increasingly congested airspace, we’ll still need to maintain clear separation between crewed and uncrewed operations. Over time, however, as those operations expand, it’s hard to imagine the two systems remaining completely separate. They’ll inevitably become more integrated. Looking ahead five to 10 years, which technological breakthrough or regulatory milestone do you believe will most dramatically reshape the economics of commercial UAS operations? In other words, what development should airline executives, aircraft financiers, appraisers, aerospace engineers, and aviation technology investors be watching most closely today? From an investor’s perspective, I’d pay close attention to companies that are already operating under beyond visual line of sight waivers, especially those conducting multi-UAS operations or operating across multiple locations in the United States. Those organizations already have a turnkey foundation because they’re preparing for Part 108 today. The FAA is using operational data from those companies to help shape the Part 108 rulemaking process. Part 108 will be the major unlock for large-scale commercial revenue. Today, you may need one operator for every aircraft. Eventually, one operator could oversee many aircraft simultaneously. Companies that are already succeeding under the waiver system will likely have a significant first-mover advantage once Part 108 takes effect. They’re positioned to scale quickly while many competitors are still trying to catch up. Thanks for your time. John Persinos is the editor-in-chief of Aircraft Value Intelligence.
ICE Agents Abandon Partial Arrest at Las Vegas Airport, Arrest Man Later at LAX
A man was thrown to the ground and handcuffed by a pair of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents at Las Vegas Airport (LAS), only for them to run off mid-arrest, as the guy had a handcuff locked on one of his wrists. Honestly, when I first saw this, I assumed the the two "officers" were actually robbers posing as ICE agents. But nope, they're really ICE agents. I find the justification for why the ran off to be really strange as well… ICE agents attempt bizarre arrest at Las Vegas Airport A video has gone viral on social media, showing a man being restrained and handcuffed on the floor in the Las Vegas Airport terminal, in an incident that happened on the evening of Monday, July 13, 2026. The two officers are undercover and posing as passengers — when they notice they're being filmed, the one ICE agent lifts up the hood of his hoodie, while the other agent has a face mask on (always nice to see people who think masks work, right?). 😉 A passenger records all of this, at which point one of the ICE agents tries to swing at him to get him to stop filming (so much for our constitutional rights to film in public, eh?). Meanwhile there's a TSA agent there trying to "control" the situation and keep the crowd away, explaining that the two people are law enforcement. Eventually the two ICE agents just run off, leaving the man on the floor with one handcuff on. A subsequent video even suggests that they stole something from the man, but that hasn't been confirmed. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Chris Motley (@motleymodel) When I first saw this video, I genuinely thought this was some sort of a robbery, with the people posing as ICE agents, and the TSA officer being confused. If these are ICE agents, why did they just walk way in the middle of detaining him? They're just going to leave him with one handcuff on? Did they walk away because they made a mistake, or because they're that scared of being filmed by someone? For what it's worth, immediately after the incident, police removed the handcuff from the guy's hand, since he had no outstanding warrants. He was then able to continue on his flight to Los Angeles (LAX), though that wasn't the end of this story… ICE instead arrested him at Los Angeles Airport This man caught his flight, only to then be arrested by ICE upon landing at Los Angeles Airport (LAX). ICE has even made a social media post about this, identifying the man as a 57-year-old Vietnamese national who reportedly overstayed his visa. 🚨ICE Los Angeles arrested Phu Nguyen, 57, of Vietnam, at LAX, July 14. Nguyen overstayed his visa and, despite attempts by agitators to help him evade ICE officers at Las Vegas airport, was taken into custody as soon as he landed in Los Angeles. pic.twitter.com/UQ9lR0hEcK — ICE Los Angeles (@EROLosAngeles) July 15, 2026 The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claims that the arrest was called off to "de-escalate the situation and for officer safety," due to "a crowd of anti-ICE agitators." Here's the full statement: On July 13, ICE attempted to arrest Phu Nguyen, an illegal alien who is an illegal alien and citizen of Australia and was born in Vietnam, at the Las Vegas Airport. As officers attempted to arrest Nguyen, a crowd of anti-ICE agitators surrounded officers. To de-escalate the situation and for officer safety, officers did not proceed with the arrest at the Las Vegas Airport and chose to instead arrest him at his flight the following day departing the Los Angeles International Airport on July 14. Nguyen entered the United States legally on a visa on May 27, 2013, with permission to remain in the United States until May 26, 2015. Nguyen refused to depart in violation of our nation's laws. He will receive full due process and remain in ICE custody pending the outcome of his removal proceedings. Being in detention is a choice. We encourage all illegal aliens to take control of their departure with the CBP Home App. The United States is offering illegal aliens $2,600 and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return. I'm sorry, I'm really confused here. The situation shown above rises to the point where they were concerned about officer safety? Honestly, these just seemed like concerned travelers who thought someone was being robbed. Like, if you see two people in hoodies pushing someone to the ground, is it wrong to ask what's going on, and to film? Did anyone threaten the ICE agents, or do anything that suggested they'd be violent? I understand we've seen some tense situations involving ICE, but this doesn't seem to rise to that level. Bottom line There's video going viral showing a man being handcuffed by two random-looking people at Las Vegas Airport, with bystanders even suggesting they took things from him. What makes this even stranger is that they just ran off after the guy had been handcuffed on one wrist. Clearly they didn't like to be filmed, given that one of the people even took a swing at the guy filming. Authorities have now confirmed that these were in fact ICE officers, and that this arrest was called off to "de-escalate the situation and for officer safety." Instead, the traveler was arrested upon landing at Los Angeles Airport, after his flight.
Czech Air Force Receives First Embraer C-390 Millennium 20 Months After Contract
The first C-390 Millennium transport aircraft was handed over to the Czech Air Force by Embraer on July 16, 2026, during a ceremony at Prague Kbely Air Base. The delivery marks the start of a new airlift capability for the country's armed forces. This comes just 20 months after the Czech Republic signed its acquisition agreement with the Brazilian manufacturer, a turnaround that Embraer pointed to as a sign of its ability to move swiftly in relation to customers' timelines. The ceremony drew a number of senior officials, including Czech Defense Minister Jaromír Zůna; General Miroslav Hlaváč, Chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces; General Petr Tománek, Commander of the Czech Air Force; and Bosco da Costa Junior, President and CEO of Embraer Defense & Security. NEWS | Embraer Delivers First C-390 Millennium to Czech Air Force Just 20 Months After Contract Signing. Read Full News: https://t.co/uSP43zhIjS pic.twitter.com/TMiL6Fdct0 — Embraer (@embraer) July 16, 2026 What the aircraft brings to the Czech Air Force Brigadier General Jaroslav Falta, Commander of the 24th Air Transportation Base, declared that the C-390 will give the Czech Air Force a meaningful new ability to move heavy and oversized cargo across long distances, supporting both NATO operations and domestic emergency response. He added that, while the aircraft itself is impressive, its real value comes down to the people trained to operate it. Defense Minister Zůna echoed that sentiment, describing the delivery as a milestone that strengthens the country's ability to transport personnel, equipment, and humanitarian aid, whether acting alone or alongside NATO allies. He said that the aircraft is expected to support the readiness and flexibility of Czech forces for years to come. Da Costa Junior, for his part, noted that the Czech Republic has been involved with the C-390 program since its early stages, contributing to its development alongside a Czech industrial base that Embraer expects to keep growing as the program expands. A new standard in tactical airlift With this delivery, the Czech Republic has become the latest country to bring the C-390 Millennium into service, joining a list of operators that includes Brazil, Portugal, Hungary, South Korea, the Netherlands, Austria, Uzbekistan, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, Slovakia, and Lithuania. Designed and built in the 21st century, the C-390 is positioned as the most modern aircraft in its class of medium military transports. It's capable of carrying up to 26 tons of payload, more than any other comparable aircraft in its category, while also flying faster, at speeds up to 470 knots, and over longer distances. Additionally, the aircraft can operate from unpaved or temporary runways, giving it flexibility in less developed or damaged airfields. Its mission profile extends well beyond basic cargo runs. The C-390 can handle troop transport, equipment and personnel airdrops, medical evacuation, search and rescue operations, firefighting, and humanitarian relief missions. With the addition of quick-installation air-to-air refueling equipment, it can also function as either a tanker or a receiver aircraft, adding another layer of versatility for the air forces that operate it. RELATED France and Germany seek new defense dynamic after fighter jet project failure
Emergency TCAS Alert Prevents Mid-Air Collision Between Iberia and Air Europa Jets Over Atlantic
A mid-air collision between two packed commercial airliners high above the Atlantic Ocean was narrowly avoided after an emergency system often described by aviation experts as “the last line of defense” issued an alert to the pilots of both aircraft to take evasive action. The shocking incident occurred on July 10 but is only now coming to light after the trusted industry publication, the Aviation Herald , obtained information about what appears to have been an incredibly close call. The two aircraft involved in the incident both belong to Spanish Airlines: An Airbus A321XLR narrowbody aircraft operated by Iberia, which was flying from Recife, Brazil, to Madrid, Spain, and a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, operated by Air Europa and flying from Madrid to Paulo Guarulhos, Brazil. Iberia flight IB-140 was flying northbound towards Europe at an altitude of around 36,000 feet above the Atlantic, while Air Europa flight UX-57 had also been reportedly cleared to fly at the same altitude, and on the same track as the Iberia, but in the opposite direction. Flying across the Atlantic requires special training for pilots because of the complicated system of ‘tracks’ that criss-cross between North and South America and Europe – a sort of freeway in the sky which requires an advanced driving license to be allowed to drive along. Air traffic controllers clear pilots to fly along a designated track at a specific altitude with clear separations between planes. What exactly went wrong in this case is yet to be determined, although the fact that an emergency alert system was activated is some evidence of how close the two airplanes came to a disaster. The alert system in question is called TCAS, or Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System. TCAS sounds an audible alarm in the cockpit if it detects the threat of a midair collision. It functions independently of ground-based alert systems, giving alerts when all other systems have failed. The system provides two levels of threat alert: Traffic advisories and resolution advisories. It’s not known whether the system provided a traffic advisory or a resolution advisory. In any case, the pilots of the Iberia A321XLR immediately reacted to the alert and descended to avoid c colliding with the Air Europa plane. Both planes arrived at their intended destinations without further incident. When pilots receive a resolution advisory, the TCAS system will give instructions on what kind of manoeuvre the pilots need to perform to avoid a collision, which could involve quickly climbing or descending to get out of the way of the other aircraft. These manoeuvres can be pretty dramatic, and, in the past, resolution advisories have resulted in some nasty injuries to passengers and crew who have been thrown about the cabin.
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