BIA fuel system expansion expected to boost efficiency

BANGOR – An expanded fuel hydrant system at Bangor International Airport will now allow the airport to service more military planes, benefiting both the airport and the Maine Air National Guard base, officials said Friday.

Completed at the end of January, the project extends fuel lines to a newly renovated apron used by the 101st Air Refueling Wing to park transient military aircraft, BIA Director Rebecca Hupp said.

The airport already provides some refueling and services to military aircraft; the expanded system will add to the airport’s capacity to service military planes that the National Guard cannot.

Pumping more fuel and offering additional services – such as deicing, water services, lavatory services and providing ground power units to provide power to the aircraft – could mean increased income at the airport.

“There could be an additional revenue stream to the airport,” Hupp said.

With so much potential for fluctuations in flights, there’s no real way to gauge what new income the expansion could bring, Hupp said.

Last year the airport pumped 21 million gallons of fuel, one of the largest amounts of fuel ever, the airport director said.

The expanded system also would alleviate problems that arise from time to time when more military flights land than the Guard can handle.

That doesn’t happen often, said Col. Don Reynolds, commander of the 101st Air Refueling Wing, who still described the new capacity as beneficial.

“It certainly is a good thing for us,” Reynolds said, noting that the Guard and the airport already have a good relationship. “It increases the capacity to handle additional military airplanes if the need arises.”