Aeroflex–Andover Airport

Aeroflex–Andover Airport (FAA LID: 12N) is a public-use airport located two nautical miles (3.704 km) north of Andover within Kittatinny Valley State Park in Sussex County, New Jersey, United States.[2][3][4] The airport is publicly owned by the New Jersey Forest Fire Service[1] and used as a base for aerial wildfire suppression.

Aeroflex–Andover Airport
Summary
Airport typePublic use
OwnerNew Jersey Forest Fire Service
OperatorJohn T. Flyntz
ServesAndover, New Jersey
LocationSussex County, New Jersey
Elevation AMSL583 ft / 178 m
Coordinates41°00′31.031″N 074°44′16.922″W
WebsiteNew Jersey State Forest Fire Service
Runways
Direction Length Surface
ft m
3/21 1,981 604 Asphalt
Statistics (2010)
Aircraft operations24,826
Based aircraft48

Facilities and aircraft

Aeroflex–Andover Airport covers an area of 12 acres (4.9 ha) at an elevation of 583 feet (178 m) above mean sea level. It has one runway designated 03/21 with an asphalt surface measuring 1,981 by 50 feet (604 x 15 m).[1]

For the 12-month period ending January 1, 2010, the airport had 24,826 aircraft operations, an average of 68 per day: 100% general aviation. At that time there were 48 aircraft based at this airport: 98% single-engine and 2% helicopter.[1]

Runway issues

Pilots consider landing on the short runway challenging, particularly for those who do not regularly use the airport. With large lakes on either end, it has been likened to an aircraft carrier.[5] While Flying editor Stephen Pope, who lives in northern New Jersey, considers that reputation to be exaggerated, "it wouldn't be my first choice if I had to divert with my family on board."[6]

External video
video icon Northerly approach to airport seen from cockpit

Pope was referring to one of two recent incidents where landing planes had come in too fast and gone off the runway into the water. In that July 5, 2019, accident, the pilot of a Cessna C172 who had left Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with his wife and children aboard was forced to divert when Morristown Municipal Airport, his intended destination, was temporarily closed so that President Donald Trump and his wife could go to the resort he owns in nearby Bedminster and play golf. The pilot and his family were rescued by a nearby fisherman before their plane could sink in 18–24 feet (5.5–7.3 m) of water in 119-acre (48 ha) Lake Aeroflex north of the runway. None of them were injured.[7]

In the earlier incident, on April 23, 2018, the pilot of a single-engine Citabria was traveling faster when he landed the plane and thus went further into the lake, roughly 100 to 150 yards (91 to 137 m), according to observers. He was able to escape the aircraft before it sank at a point where the water was 80 feet (24 m) deep. After complaining of neck and chest pains, and having been exposed to cold water, he was airlifted to Morristown Memorial Hospital for treatment.[8]

See also

References
  1. FAA Airport Form 5010 for 12N PDF, effective 2012-02-09
  2. Federal Aviation Administration, National Flight Data Center for Aeroflex–Andover Airport (12N). Retrieved July 18, 2015.
  3. "12N – Aeroflex–Andover Airport". AirNav. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  4. "Aeroflex–Andover Airport – 12N". Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
  5. Davisson, Budd (February 6, 2016). "Challenging Runways". Plane & Pilot. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
  6. Pope, Stephen. "Contingency Planning". Flying. p. 10.
  7. Comstock, Lori (July 5, 2019). "4 escape injury when aircraft goes off runway, submerges in Lake Aeroflex". New Jersey Herald. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
  8. Jennings, Rob (April 23, 2018). "Pilot injured when plane crashes into lake at N.J. airport". Newark Star-Ledger. Retrieved August 21, 2019.
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