As officials prepare to finalize a new long-range plan for Yellowstone Regional Airport in Cody, don’t expect them to call for moving the facility to a new location.

The airport is limited to some extent by the surrounding terrain, but moving to a new location would be “a huge undertaking,” said Airport Director Bob Hooper. Beyond constructing a new runway, there would be a terminal, facilities for fixed-base operators, aircraft rescue and firefighting facilities and dozens of private hangars that would have to be built anew.

As for what such an effort might cost, Hooper pointed to Williston, North Dakota. The city — with a population most recently estimated at roughly 27,100 people — just built an airport in a new location at a cost of roughly $273 million.

Instead of searching for a new location, YRA officials are working on ways to make it easier for pilots to fly into the current spot.

“As long as we can continue to enhance this airport and make it feasible for our designed aircraft, we should probably utilize this facility as long as we can,” Hooper said at last week’s Park County Commission meeting.

Between the 50-, 70- and even 90-passenger jets that are expected to use YRA, “our runway system is quite capable of handling those type aircraft for the foreseeable future,” he said.

Hooper made the comments in response to a question from Commissioner Dossie Overfield. She wondered if there was serious thought being given to a new location as YRA officials revise their master plan — and plan to sink another $1.4 million into a new car rental quick turn facility (see related story).

“In looking at the documentation and reading some things about the airport … and runway distances and plane sizes and all those kinds of things, it keeps coming back every once in a while of moving the airport or changing things,” Overfield said. She added that she didn’t know how realistic the idea was, but she’s not alone in wondering: Cody Mayor Matt Hall also raised the idea during master plan discussions.

The terrain around YRA can make approaches more difficult and has led to more weather-related flight cancellations in Cody than other facilities around the region, a draft of the master plan says. Further, when windy conditions or other poor weather makes it unsafe to land on the primary runway, Runway 22, pilots must land on Runway 4. However, that secondary runway lacks a straight-in approach — which presents a problem for less experienced pilots.

“Regional air transport carriers currently serving the Cody area have limited operations and/or training related to circling approaches, leaving few options for consistent year-round operations,” said the draft plan.

Commissioner Overfield can speak from experience about the issues, as she’s had trouble flying into Cody from Denver this year because of weather.

“I was with you,” Hooper commiserated.

To improve access, he said YRA hopes to soon receive Federal Aviation Administration approval for a new straight-in approach to Runway 4 and will look “at adding better navigational aids to enhance the landing experience for the pilots.”

The draft plans says YRA leaders are also studying possible ways to reduce the airport’s approach minimums.