The Seymour Municipal Airport Authority board recently discussed the growth of the airport and what they are still working on to improve it.

After President Brian Thompson called the board’s July 26 meeting to order, Morgan Bobb, who has taken over Victoria Taylor’s position as the airport authority’s administrative assistant, conducted roll call.

Airport manager Colin Smith spoke about airport gating, which the Freeman Municipal Airport is lacking.

“We do need to prioritize security of the airport,” he said.

Smith reported seeing some unknown vehicles parked in places where they should not, but without being regulated, there is no stopping them. With the airport’s increased operations, the need for gates has become more pressing.

“We used to have zero dollars on our apron and now we have close to $80 million,” he said.

Thompson agreed to the importance of including gates, but brought up some specifics that need to be considered along with their installation. Improving security while maintaining order and a visual aesthetic is crucial to this plan. Thompson and Smith agreed to sit down with a map and outline what would work best for incorporating gates in a cost effective and efficient manner.

Another inclusion for the airport Smith brought up was investing in an airport ground power unit (GPU), which is, as Thompson put it, “a battery pack on wheels.”

Along with more traffic, there have been more requests for getting a GPU. Some jets have skipped over the airport because of this.

“GPUs are actually used by jets to start up their turbines and powers up their [auxiliary power units] — it helps the jets in more ways than can be stated,” Smith said.

To display a GPU’s importance, Smith spoke about a jet being stranded at their airport because the pilot wasted too much battery before getting the turbines going. Due to this, a maintenance jet came in to charge that plane.

Smith said he although he was already aware of the usefulness of having a GPU, this was one instance where the thought was solidified in his mind.

After hearing the feedback from the board, Smith said he would plan on getting a quote for a GPU.

The final suggestion Smith had for improving the airport was adding a sump saver unit, which would recycle the leftover substances in aircraft fuel tanks, separating water and contaminants from the fuel to clean and make it usable. According to Smith, from past experiences, this has saved an average of 40-55 gallons of gas and fuel combined a month.

With all of these efforts, the board is hoping to reach the “next class” as Thompson put it, to place their airport higher on the Federal Aviation Administration’s radar due to their operation usage.

“The more things we can offer, the more we can increase,” board member Scott Davis said.

Thompson talked about some of his recent air travel, speaking highly of the Freeman Municipal Airport’s services offered that other airports he visited do not. During his travel, Thompson landed in seven airports he has not been to before. In his opinion, the Seymour airport would get more traffic if they just got the word out.

“I saw this — our untapped resources here, compared relative to the others,” he said.

Part of the plan to spread the word included advertising to clubs that airports like Oshkosh’s does, an airport Thompson liked the most during his travels, to let them know the assets Freeman has available. The board made a motion to create a discount for those in the Warbirds Club to facilitate that interest. As a member of that club, Thompson would not receive that discount.

Although Taylor does not work at the airport anymore, she attended the meeting, helping out for a final time with Bobb’s first meeting.

The authority board meets at 7:15 p.m. every third Tuesday of the month at the Freeman Municipal Airport, 1025 A Ave.