Working with the FAA: Airport Planning Coordination Basics
Almost every meaningful change at a public-use airport runs through the FAA in some form — a layout-plan revision, an airspace filing, a grant application, an environmental review. For a planner, knowing who at the FAA to talk to, when coordination is required, and which documents govern is half the job. This is a 101-level orientation to the FAA point of contact, the triggers for coordination, the core orders and forms, and how an AIP grant moves from idea to obligation.
The Airports District Office (ADO)
For airport development, the airport sponsor’s primary FAA point of contact is the Airports District Office (ADO). Where there is no district office for a given area, that role falls to the FAA Regional Airports Division. The ADO is where the day-to-day work happens: it administers the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) for the airports in its jurisdiction, reviews and approves Airport Layout Plans (ALPs), oversees NEPA and other environmental review, reviews grant applications, and monitors the sponsor’s compliance with the federal grant assurances.
It helps to keep the hierarchy straight. The FAA Office of Airports (ARP) in Washington sets national policy — the Advisory Circulars, Orders, and standards every airport follows. The ADO applies that policy locally, to your specific facility and your specific project. When a planner needs an interpretation, a determination, or a sign-off, the conversation starts at the ADO.
When FAA coordination is required
Not every project needs FAA involvement, but the common triggers are well defined. Coordinate with the FAA when any of the following apply:
- Any change to the FAA-approved ALP, or development that is inconsistent with it. Under Grant Assurance 29 (Airport Layout Plan), a sponsor cannot make or permit changes to the airport that are not in conformity with the approved ALP without FAA approval.
- Construction, alteration, or activity that may affect navigable airspace. This is filed on FAA Form 7460-1 (Notice of Proposed Construction or Alteration) under 14 CFR Part 77; the FAA studies the proposal and issues an airspace determination.
- Applying for AIP grant funding for an eligible project — the grant process is FAA-administered from start to finish.
- Federal actions that trigger environmental review under NEPA, including FAA approval of an ALP change or a federally funded project.
- Establishing or changing instrument approach procedures, declared distances, or other operational items that require an airspace or procedures review.
The practical rule of thumb: if a project touches federal money, the approved ALP, navigable airspace, or how aircraft operate at the field, assume coordination is required and confirm with the ADO early.
Key FAA documents planners should know
A handful of Advisory Circulars and Orders govern most airport planning work. You do not need them memorized, but you should know what each one is for and cite it by number.
- AC 150/5300-13B — Airport Design. The governing dimensional standard for runway, taxiway, and safety-area geometry.
- AC 150/5070-6B — Airport Master Plans. The framework for the master-planning process itself.
- FAA Order 5100.38 — Airport Improvement Program (AIP) Handbook. How AIP grants are administered, from eligibility to closeout.
- FAA Order 5050.4B and FAA Order 1050.1F — NEPA. The environmental review procedures for airport actions (5050.4B is airport-specific; 1050.1F is the agency-wide policy).
- 14 CFR Part 77 — objects affecting navigable airspace. The rule behind the FAA Form 7460-1 filing and the airspace determination.
- AC 150/5000-17 — Critical Aircraft and Regular Use Determination. How the design aircraft that drives the standards is established.
- ARP SOP 2.00 — FAA review and approval of Airport Layout Plans. The internal procedure governing how the FAA reviews and acts on an ALP submission.
The AIP grant process, end to end
The Airport Improvement Program provides federal grants for eligible projects at airports included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS). The flow, at a high level, runs like this:
- The sponsor identifies and sequences projects in its Airport Capital Improvement Plan (ACIP) — the multi-year list of needs.
- The FAA prioritizes projects nationally, weighing them against other airports’ needs and available funding.
- The sponsor submits a grant application for an eligible, justified project — with an FAA-approved ALP and any required environmental clearance already in place.
- The FAA issues a grant offer; the sponsor accepts it, thereby taking on the federal grant assurances and obligations that come with the funds.
How airports tap the program differs by type. Primary airports receive enplanement-based entitlement (apportionment) funding. Nonprimary airports receive nonprimary entitlements and compete for discretionary funds. In every case, eligibility hinges on being in the NPIAS and having the planning groundwork — ALP, justification, environmental review — done first.
Coordination is continuous, not a one-time event
The single most useful habit for a planner is to treat FAA coordination as an ongoing relationship rather than a box checked once. The two things that keep a project eligible and on schedule are the same two things planners most often let slip: keeping the ALP current, and engaging the ADO early — before the design is locked, before the grant clock starts, before a construction filing is due. A project that arrives at the ADO with a stale ALP, no environmental clearance, or an unfiled 7460-1 does not move faster; it waits. Front-loading the coordination is what keeps everything downstream defensible.
This article is a reference summary for planning use, not a substitute for the governing FAA text or for direct coordination with your Airports District Office. Citations refer to AC 150/5300-13B (Airport Design), AC 150/5070-6B (Airport Master Plans), AC 150/5000-17 (Critical Aircraft and Regular Use Determination), FAA Order 5100.38 (AIP Handbook), FAA Order 5050.4B and FAA Order 1050.1F (NEPA), 14 CFR Part 77 with FAA Form 7460-1, and ARP SOP 2.00 (ALP review and approval). Always verify against the current edition of each document and with the FAA before acting. See the full airport planning glossary or the AvPlot toolkit.