MILWAUKEE - One last flight is cleared to land at Mitchell International before air traffic control closes the runway. The airport’s snow fighting fleet is ready to pounce. Two dozen specialty plows move into a well-rehearsed, squadron-like formation. They spread the 200-foot width of pavement. “We do a one pass plowing operation,” explained operations supervisor Joe Marchewka. “It takes about 18 minutes to get down the runway.” In use for the first time this season, brand new trucks are the size of a semi. They were acquired to get planes back in the air faster. They are known as combo machines and they include three different snow clearing method on one piece of equipment. There is a plow in front, a high-speed broom in the middle and a powerful blower in the rear. ”With our brooms, we have it down to the bare pavement,” Marchewka told TODAY’S TMJ4 reporter Tom Murray. On the sidelines, crews de-ice planes so they can be ready as soon as the airport reopens. But with several of these snow-clearing closures today, several flights were delayed and many cancelled. Stranded traveler Teresa Reyes wondered, “Am I going to get out today or not?” The last pass on the runway comes from a giant version of a driveway snow blower. A giant spinning blade mounted on the front shoots away what the plows push to the side. “We want to do one pass down the runway and get the planes back on the runway as fast as we can,” Marchewka told TODAY’S TMJ4 reporter Tom Murray. No salt is used in airport snow removal operations because it is harsh on aircraft aluminum. Instead, county trucks spread salt and a special melting chemical. Runways and taxiways are cleared to specific airline standards, with Northwest being among the most stringent. Marchewka said airport snow clearing operations and equipment is paid for by airlines who use the airport, not taxpayers.