How Lakeland Linder Airport balances Sun 'n Fun, passengers and cargo service

Annual airshow flying into Lakeland

FOX 13's Carla Bayron reports on what security measures are being taken ahead of Lakeland's annual Sun 'N Fun airshow event.

LAKELAND, Fla. - For the first time in the history of the annual fly-in and airshow event, Sun 'n Fun, Lakeland Linder International Airport will be balancing small aircraft, commercial and cargo aircraft.

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During the peak of Sun 'n Fun, it's not uncommon to see a plane land every 30 to 60 seconds because of increased traffic. The airport doubles their ability to land, allowing parallel runways for the event.

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The FAA brings in a team of about 63 air traffic controllers from across the country who set up a special approach tower at Lake Parker. For comparison, normally the airport has only two controllers per shift.

The airport also has controllers on the ground and in its normal tower.

"They're handling everything in the air from the military that's coming to visit us, from our airshow performers, and our general aviation pilots flying into camp to hang with us that week, as well as our normal operators such as Avelo and Amazon, as well as our tenants," said Assistant Airport Director Adam Lunn.

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Avelo Airlines started their first commercial flights at the airport last June and will soon have eight destinations. The expansion has brought with it job growth as the airport now has 91 employees.

"We're constantly looking at what's best for our community and tourism," said Airport Director Kris Hallstrand. "We have some exciting destinations in the future, I'm sure we're going to reach. Our goal is to get more up into the Midwest and other areas."

Why you should care:

To keep everyone safe, the FAA creates a gap in the flow of traffic for the larger airplanes.

"Those [larger] planes will come in without having to interact with the smaller aircraft," said Lunn. "As soon as those planes land, they'll start to flow back up again and start to bring in all of our other smaller aircraft."

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Airline customers shouldn't notice a difference in their experience and neither should Sun 'n Fun guests.

Sun 'N Fun starts next week on Tuesday, April 1 and lasts through Sunday, April 6.

The Source: The information in this story was gathered through interviews with officials with Lakeland Linder Airport.

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