Sept. 02--The Salina Airport Authority will lease a portion of a large hangar at the Salina airport to Bombardier's Flight Test Center in Wichita, which will allow Bombardier to consolidate hangar space into one location.
Since 2009, the flight test center has leased space at multiple airfield locations at Salina Regional Airport, the airport said.
Members of the Salina Airport Authority unanimously approved the lease and more than $600,000 in improvements to the hangar and a taxiway at a Tuesday afternoon meeting.
Bombardier's Flight Test Center has been in need of facilities for aircraft storage, maintenance and flight test activities, according to information from the Salina Airport Authority.
The hangar, Hangar No. 959 at the Salina Regional Airport, was built in the early 1960s by the Air Force.
It was last occupied by Hawker Beechcraft, which vacated the space in February 2012 as it consolidated operations. Hawker Beechcraft filed for bankruptcy protection in May of that year.
The hangar can house aircraft with wing spans over 200 feet and tail heights of up to 58 feet.
Bombardier will lease about 27,000 square feet of the 130,000-square-foot hangar for two years as well as terminate its existing aircraft storage leases in two other hangars at the airport.
When the lease expires, the company has the option to renew the lease for two terms of one year.
Bombardier Learjet will be charged $15,675 a month in rent for the space.
Reopening the hangar for use will prompt a series of improvements.
The airport must improve the pavement on one of the taxiways, Taxiway G, and the hangar's south parking apron, according to airport officials. Overhead power lines must be removed and buried underground, hangar doors must be put back in operation, and a fire suppression system must also be operational.
The project will cost $622,708, airport officials said.
The Airport Authority has received a commitment for a $350,000 grant from the Kansas Department of Transportation for the work.
The Salina Airport Authority will contribute $272,708.
The hangar will be ready for occupancy Oct. 1, it said.
The Bombardier Flight Test Center supports engineering and certification flight test programs for Bombardier business jets and commercial aircraft. Since 1991, its flight test personnel and staff have brought a number of models to the market.
"From time to time, Bombardier Aerospace and BFTC (Bombardier Flight Test Center) staff may deploy to (the Salina airport) and H959 for extended flight test activity," information from the Salina Airport Authority said.
Reach Molly McMillin at 316-269-6708 or [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter: @mmcmillin.
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