Rosecrans Memorial Airport in ‘snow mode’ as extreme weather persists
St. Joseph airport crews are plowing ahead through both snow and now frigid temperatures to help provide a clear pathway for landing and takeoff.
Snow mode was officially activated at 6 a.m. at Rosecrans Memorial Airport after two more rounds of snow blanketed the area through Monday and Tuesday, with both military and civilian staff working around the clock to clear runways and taxiways for key air traffic.
Rosecrans Airport Manager Julius Rice said with each winter weather event comes its own set of unique conditions to monitor and game plan for.
“We've activated the snow operations here at the airport more times so far this year than we have the past couple of years," Rice said. "January came and 16 inches of snow. And it seems like it's been a little bit nonstop since then."
Tuesday's snow removal operation was conducted against the backdrop of dangerously cold temperatures and more snow, with feels like temps dipping as low as minus 14 degrees.
"Temperatures like this are miserable both for the person and for the equipment. Obviously layers, layers, layers," Rice said. "These cold of temps, if you're flying a smaller airplane, you might not even be able to fly because the engines don't get warm enough."
Rice said subzero temperatures gripping St. Joseph can have a notable impact on snow removal equipment, whether its diesel fuel freezing or wear and tear on steel tracks.
Tuesday's operation helped clear the way for multiple successful aircraft departures this morning even with artic temperatures and extreme winter weather to combat.
"Anytime weather is this bad, volume does decrease just because it's this cold down here on the ground. it's even colder up high. but yesterday, before we even finished clearing, we had two arrivals come. so it doesn't stop it, but it does definitely slow down the traffic."
The operation was also a reminder of the vital role that runway maintenance plays with extreme winter weather, particularly in light of Monday's incident at a Toronto airport where a Delta passenger plane crashed on landing.
At the time of the incident the area was experiencing blowing snow and winds gusting up to 40 mph, according to the Meteorological Service of Canada. The temperature was about 16.5 degrees.
An official cause for the crash has not been determined as investigators continue to review the incident.
“Whenever you have snow or ice on a runway, wind becomes a bigger factor because you have less traction on the ground,” Rice said. “It all depends on the conditions. But when you get into these winter type conditions where everything on the ground is white, you know, from an airplane, that makes it a little bit tougher to to find the runway and where you're going."
In extreme weather conditions like what St. Joseph is facing, Rice said wind speeds, ground conditions and temperatures are some of the top factors to evaluate, especially depending on the model of the plane and what it can handle. Rice described it as an onion with many different layers to monitor.
"As an airport, we make it as safe as possible. But ultimately it all comes down to the pilot in command of each individual airplane. They make that go, no-go decision, as we call it, So we make it as safe as possible."
