There’s a New ‘Runway Guy’ in Town – Vice President in Aviation, Dale Stubbs

RS&H proudly welcomes Dale Stubbs to the team as one of our newest Vice Presidents in Aviation.

Stubbs has designed dozens of runway and airfield projects across the country, eventually working on so many that he became, as he puts it, the “runway guy.” Needless to say, Stubbs brings with him a vast amount of experience and plenty of connections in the field.

“Dale is an outstanding engineer and we’re happy to be adding him to the RS&H Aviation team,” said Senior Vice President Don Andrews.

One of the most noteworthy projects among Stubbs’ three decades of work is the highly-publicized fifth runway at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

Designing the runway involved a considerable amount of ingenuity, consisting of two bridges to support up to 1.3 million pounds crossing over Interstate 285. Stubbs served as project manager, leading the way on planning and preliminary design for the 1,100-foot tunnel and 550-foot parallel bridge.

The Atlanta airport serves as a hub for both international and domestic flights, so the addition of the runway was not only a huge improvement for the city, but also the country’s travelers as a whole. In fact, upon opening in 2006, it was named the “Most Important Runway in America,” credited with relieving delays, saving on airline costs and improving overall customer service.

While he has long called Atlanta home and worked on many Hartsfield-Jackson projects, Stubbs has also worked on airports in Fort Lauderdale, Charleston, Raleigh-Durham, Puerto Rico, Panama City, Knoxville, Cincinnati and Savannah, just to name a few.

The passion Stubbs has for aviation is one that has been passed down through the generations.

“My father flew helicopters in the Army, so I was always around airfields and aircraft,” Stubbs said.

Stubbs even considered entering into the Service himself before becoming captivated by aviation engineering.

While he attended school to become a civil engineer, Stubbs found that there wasn’t any training available specific to aviation. Most of what he has learned has come from on-the-job training, which he began before he graduated college.

“All my friends were working on roads with semis and bridges, but I got to walk under 747’s,” said Stubbs, describing his excitement working on the airfield.

Stubbs, with his experience and passion, is the perfect fit for the RS&H team.

“I love the culture that’s here,” he said. “I just want to enhance it and add exciting projects to our resume.”

When he isn’t in the office or on the airfield, Stubbs enjoys working on his fixer-upper home or riding around town in his Mustang. He’s also a huge sports fan.

“I’m a local boy,” Stubbs admits, noting his favorite teams as the Georgia Bulldogs, Atlanta Falcons, Braves, and Hawks.