PDK Is First Georgia Airport To Install EMAS

Atlanta-area DeKalb Peachtree Airport has begun construction on the first engineered materials arrestor system (EMAS) in the state of Georgia. It will be installed on 6,000-foot main Runway 3R/21L, the sixth-busiest in the state (the top five are all at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport).

Phase I, which included relocation of sanitary sewer, stormwater, and electrical lines associated with the FAA shelter that controls the localizer and runway lights running beneath the EMAS safety area at the end of Runway 3R, will be completed this weekend, with Phase II commencing next week. The latter will involve the relocation of the airport’s localizer, disrupting its use until November.

The project will also cause operational disruptions to the airport’s runways. Starting August 13, Runway 21L will have its available landing distance (LDA) reduced to 4,551 feet. Work on Phase III, which will involve the actual installation of the EMAS, will run 24/7 for 60 days, starting on September 12. While the airport’s other runways will be unaffected, during the first 30 days, from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m., arrivals and departures will be limited to Runway 21L, while nighttime departures will be on Runway 3R with access from Taxiway Foxtrot only. That will switch for the second half of the period, with daytime departures from Runway 3R accessed from Taxiway Foxtrot only, and Runway 21L deployed for nighttime arrivals and departures.

Phase IV will include installation of EMAS blocks outside the runway safety area and coincide with the return of all navaids and normal runway operations. It will commence on November 11, and the project is scheduled to conclude 30 days later.