A decades-old runway at Olathe's New Century AirCenter is getting a full rebuild, backed by a fresh round of federal money aimed at fixing what officials describe as aging, deteriorating infrastructure. The funding is set to cover a complete reconstruction of Runway 18-36, the airport's primary strip, which has served corporate, military and general aviation traffic in the region for decades.
The size of the latest award depends on who you ask. KCTV reported the Johnson County Airport Commission received a $13.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation for the work, a figure the station attributed to Representative Sharice Davids, who represents Kansas. Johnson County's own announcement, however, put the number at $13.4 million, stating that the Federal Aviation Administration had announced that amount in new grant funds for runway reconstruction and signage at the airport, according to jocogov.org.
Either way, the money is flowing through the FAA's Airport Infrastructure Program, the same funding stream that provided support for the project, per an earlier KCTV report. The grant targets critical airfield updates identified in the Johnson County Airport Commission's master plan, and Davids said in comments cited by KCTV that the funding will replace aging, deteriorating runways with safer, more reliable infrastructure.
What the Rebuild Covers
The reconstruction work extends beyond just repaving. Per KCTV's reporting, the project includes full reconstruction of more than 7,000 feet of Runway 18-36, along with complete reconstruction of aging airfield lighting and replacement of outdated airfield signage. Johnson County's release describes the same runway as 7,300 feet long, while the airport's own department page lists its primary runway at 7,339 feet — a discrepancy the available records don't resolve.
The total project is estimated to cost approximately $45 million, according to jocogov.org, which breaks the funding down as $37 million in federal dollars, $1.2 million from the state of Kansas, and $6.8 million in local funding. That local share, the county noted, comes entirely from the Johnson County Airport Commission itself, with no Johnson County general fund dollars included. The current federal award follows an earlier phase of the project first announced in September 2025 with $21 million in approved funding, KCTV reported at the time.
Construction Timeline and Airport Coordination
Construction is expected to begin in 2027, and per KCTV, airport officials plan to coordinate with tenants, pilots and nearby communities to minimize travel disruptions once work gets underway. Bryan Johnson, executive director of the Johnson County Airport Commission, is identified in KCTV's report as the agency's lead official overseeing the effort, which the station's coverage frames as supporting a runway essential to the region's economic vitality and transportation reliability.
New Century AirCenter sits at 175th Street and Interstate 35, Exit 210, in the southwest Kansas City metro, according to jocogov.org, spread across more than 2,700 acres. The site has a long history: it was originally built as the Olathe Naval Air Station in the early 1940s to train pilots for World War II, the county's airport page notes, before the Johnson County Airport Commission acquired it in 1973. It was renamed New Century AirCenter in 1995.
Busy Airfield, Disputed Numbers
Just how busy the airport is depends on the source. KCTV described New Century AirCenter as Kansas' second-busiest airport, housing nearly 200 aircraft and logging more than 96,000 flight operations annually. Johnson County's own release put the based-aircraft figure closer to 183, while the airport's official department page lists approximately 120 based aircraft — though both sources agree on the 96,000 annual operations figure.
The runway rebuild follows earlier maintenance on the same stretch of pavement: jocogov.org's airport history notes that Runway 18/36 underwent mill-and-overlay work and rehabilitation between 2000 and 2010, and that Taxiway K was slated for complete reconstruction by 2025 alongside a seal coat of Taxiway L.
KCTV's report also placed the grant in a broader statewide context, noting that Kansas has received over $3.2 billion in federal infrastructure investments to date, funding that has also gone toward rural broadband expansion, lead service line replacements and improvements to K-68. Federal infrastructure law backed by Davids has been cited as the vehicle for much of that spending. Separately, the Kansas Department of Transportation notes that eligible airports statewide can receive up to $800,000 per project through a state funding opportunity, with higher limits available for new runway construction and full-depth reconstruction, according to the Kansas Department of Transportation. Governor Laura Kelly's office announced nearly $19 million for 53 aviation projects across the state in April, according to the Office of the Governor of Kansas, including $281,700 for runway design and land work at Harold Krier Field in Ashland.
