Gary / Chicago International Airport Allocates $9.8 Million Grant for Air Cargo Expansion, Allowing for 2025 Completion of Phase 1 Cargo Construction

The Gary / Chicago International Airport (GCIA) announced an acceleration to the construction schedule of their previously announced “Phase 1” cargo services expansion. The announcement coincided with the airport receiving a previously allocated $9.82 million grant by the State of Indiana. The timing of this grant allows GCIA to fully construct its full allocation of eight (8) wide-bodied aircraft parking positions simultaneously, which will be housed on roughly 25 acres of concrete ramp as part of its Phase 1 cargo expansion. Construction for this Phase 1 expansion is now scheduled to be completed by the end of 2025, and the ability to construct all the intended aircraft parking positions simultaneously provides the airport with roughly $8.5 million in overall cost savings for their Phase 1 project.

 

“We are very pleased to be able to construct all of our planned plane parking in one fell swoop versus a more sequential process over a period of years, given how quickly our cargo sector continues to grow,” said GCIA Executive Director Dan Vicari. “We are very grateful to Congressman Frank Mrvan and the State of Indiana for their continued support and assistance in securing the funding for this critical Phase 1 cargo expansion.”

 

2025 has seen substantial evolution in the airport’s growing cargo service offerings, creating substantial job creating and economic development benefits to Northwest Indiana. The year has also seen increased land holdings by the airport, following its $925,000 property acquisition of 4.7 acres of land that was announced in April of this year.

 

GCIA has seen extensive growth since 2015, starting with the expansion of the airport’s main runway to nearly 9,000 feet, making it the second longest runway in the region after O’Hare International Airport. This expansion has allowed the airport to service larger, heavier aircraft. GCIA opened its U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facility in 2018, allowing air travelers from any international destination to frequent the airport without needing to clear customs elsewhere.

 

In 2020, GCIA began cargo service operations via UPS, who signed a long-term lease agreement. Cargo service operations have quickly scaled, and GCIA now ranks 3rd in the State of Indiana for its freight volume, with further growth anticipated in coming years.  In 2022, GCIA received formal Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) approvals for its Master Plan, a long-term planning document that will guide the next several decades of airport aviation and growth.

 

2024 saw multiple milestones reached, including unveiling its new website, breaking ground on a new $12 million, 47,000 square foot aviation hangar as well as breaking ground on “Phase 1” of a planned $67 million cargo services infrastructure investment that will boost its growing cargo sector. This effort coincided with the airport agreeing to a long-term extension with UPS, further enlarging the airports cargo capacity. The year also saw the airport awarded a $1.7 million Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grant to design and engineer a new, state-of-the-art airport traffic control tower.