The Development Corporation of Snyder’s (DCOS) plans for a drone simulator, air museum and auto shop in Winston Field’s new hangar have been grounded by the county and state.
The new Winston Field hangar will not be used for an air museum, drone simulator or to house Project Frankenstein, County Judge Ricky Fritz said.
Winston Field Manager Bob Snedeker received details from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) Aviation department about how the $1 million hangar may be used.
“The hangar cannot be used for the proposed air museum, drone simulator or Project Frankenstein,” Fritz said. “It does not meet the aviation standards.”
TxDOT spokesman Mark Cross said in a statement, “The hangar currently being built at Winston Field (Scurry County) is intended for aeronautical use only. Any structure or hangar built with funding from TxDOT Aviation is under grant assurance that it will be for aeronautical use.”
Fritz said the county will comply with the TxDOT decision because of its relationship with the TxDOT Aviation department.
“We have had a wonderful relationship with TxDOT Aviation. We now have a $1 million asset we can use for recruitment,” Fritz said.
County commissioners’ voted last month to support a DCOS grant application with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and to donate the hangar for the drone simulator, museum and Project Frankenstein as part of the required match.
The original USDA application stated the county planned to donate 1,500-square feet of space in the new hangar.
Cross said that was not included in the approved TxDOT grant application.
“The original understanding with Scurry County is that the hangar will either be used for a working museum which would have running aircraft that would fly to events or used for transient (overnight) and permanent aircraft storage with working aircraft,” Cross said. “Any other uses would have to be vetted through TxDOT Aviation.”
Cross said if a change in the hangar’s use is made, the airport is responsible for informing TxDOT and might have to reimburse the state for the grant.
“If there is a change and the proposed use remains to be aeronautical, we will work with the airport management and evaluate the proposed use and let them know if it is acceptable,” he said. “We will ask their management specific questions to determine the best usage and let them know if the use can be converted. However, if the change is from aeronautical use to non-aeronautical use, it will flat out not be allowed without risk of paying back the grant for the hangar, risk of paying back other grants issued, which obligated the airport owner to operate the airport for aeronautical use and risk of losing future grant funds.”
During a Dec. 19 DCOS board meeting, Lavers said if the county decided to charge for the hangar space, the drone simulator would be installed at a different location.
“If the county says they will charge $15,000 for rent, we could pull them out of the grant and still have enough of a match to score well,” he said. “We would have to buy a trailer for the simulator.”
Lavers was unavailable to comment today.
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