to secure an "A1A" rating, the planners built runways, twice the minimum runway width mandated by the Department of Commerce. These runways were designed for planes taking off. The planners also constructed grass fields with several layers of soil, which would allow for smooth plane landings. They conducted studies on other infrastructure, such as the power, sewage, and water systems, to determine what materials should be used to allow the airport to get an "AAA" rating, which was the same as an "A1A" rating. Barren Island Airport was renamed after the aviator Floyd Bennett in October 1928. Floyd's wife, Cora, recalled that they had once toured Barren Island when Floyd said, "Some day, Cora, there will be an airport here." Bennett and Richard E. Byrd claimed to have been the first to travel to the North Pole by airplane, having made the flight in May 1926, for which they both received the Medal of Honor. They were preparing to fly to the South Pole in 1927 when Bennett placed these plans on hold in order to rescue the crew of the Bremen. Bennett died of pneumonia in April 1927, during the Bremen rescue mission, and he was subsequently buried with honors at Arlington National Cemetery. Many things were named after Bennett, including the aircraft Byrd and three others flew to the South Pole in 1929 and the Barren Island Airport. After the field was completely filled and leveled, the two concrete runways were built. The shorter runway was numbered 15–33 while the longer runway was numbered 6–24. At the time, Runway 6–24 was the longest concrete runway in the U.S. The layer of reinforced concrete, gravel drainage strips, and extra width contributed to the airport's "AAA" rating. The new airfield's runways, built at a time when most "airports" still had dirt runways and no night landings, made the airport among the most advanced of its day, as did its comfortable terminal facilities with numerous amenities. As work on the runways was ongoing, plans for the administration building and hangars were being revised. The number of hangars was reduced from fourteen to eight due to a lack of funds; the other six hangars were supposed to be built later, but it never happened. After the plans were finalized in late 1929, construction started on the administration building and eight hangars. Materials were shipped by boat to a temporary pier west of