Chicago Executive Airport gets $5.3M in state money

Associated Press

Chicago Executive Airport is receiving $5.3 million in state money to make safety improvements.

Gov. Pat Quinn announced the funding for Chicago Executive Airport in Wheeling on Thursday.

It will be used to install a large area of crushable concrete at the end of a runway. The specially engineered concrete can slow or stop an aircraft if it overruns the runway.

State Sen. Julie Morrison is a Democrat from Deerfield whose district includes the airport. She says the facility - also known as Palwaukee Airport - is the third busiest in the Chicago area.

Quinn says the investment will make the airport safer and more efficient and employ a number of construction workers.

The money comes from the $31 billion capital construction project lawmakers approved in 2009.