1. A. This category weighs the use of an airport relative to the use of other airports in the system. The basic objective is to support projects that serve the most aviation users. This objective has to be balanced with DOTD’s goals of maintaining a viable statewide system of public use airports, and maintaining aviation and public safety. For this reason, air carrier and general aviation airports are prioritized separately.
2. B. Points are awarded based on the number of aircraft based at the airport and/or the number of commercial enplanements. The point values have been developed to attempt to recognize higher use of an airport while not eliminating a low use airport from consideration for projects. Exhibit 2 shows the point rating structure for this category.
3. C. The number of based aircraft at an airport, as indicated in the latest 5010 inspection report, or the national based aircraft inventory, is used to determine the relative level of use at an airport. However, the number of operations for each based aircraft is not accounted for by using only the based aircraft numbers. For instance, itinerant operations are not recognized, nor are other operations by aircrafts not based on the field, such as agricultural and military aircraft. All of these factors will affect the overall number of operations at an airport, which is a more accurate measure of airport use. General Aviation airports can confirm their airport’s aircraft operations through the utilization of airport operation communication devices that will collect annual data to verify their operational capacity. The airport may incentivize their project scores within the facility usage category of the project scoring criteria through participation in this data collection program.

Authority Note

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with USC 49:47103, SCR 67 (1997) and R.S. 2:6.

Historical Note

HISTORICAL NOTE: Promulgated by the Department of Transportation and Development, Division of Aviation, LR 16:538 (June 1990), amended LR 24:1511 (August 1998), amended by the Department of Transportation and Development, Intermodal Transportation Division, LR 33:525 (March 2007), repromulgated by the Department of Transportation and Development, Aviation Section, LR 39:110 (January 2013), amended by the Department of Transportation and Development, Intermodal Transportation Division, Aviation Section, LR 42:760 (May 2016), amended by the Department of Transportation and Development, Office of Multimodal Commerce, LR 49:1424 (August 2023).