The privately-owned Festus airport is closing down for good.
Pilots have been told to move their aircraft out of the hangars by mid-September. Board member Richard Yokum told KMOX about what Jefferson County will be missing once the airport is gone.
He said he doesn't actually know why the airport is closing, and that it's a complicated issue because the property it's on is privately owned, but the airport is publicly run. He said the closure will have a big economic impact.
"It's going to be huge. I think it is. You have a lot of flights coming north coming south, such as your children's helicopter, Arch helicopter medivac, that will use us as a stop for fuel. And that's going to go away," Yokum said. "So they either are going to have to go to go further north or south to get that fuel."
He added that it could also be a safety concern for people who typically stop to rest or refuel in the area.
Listen to more analysis from Wednesday's Total Information AM:
