Wilmington Air Park, AMES open new MRO hangar

Wilmington, Ohio – Wilmington Air Park and Airborne Maintenance and Engineering Services (AMES) hosted Ohio Gov. John R. Kasich for the grand opening of a new maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) aircraft hangar in Wilmington, Ohio.

 

Leased by AMES, the hangar is located within the Wilmington Air Park, which is owned and operated by the Clinton County Port Authority. AMES is currently a tenant at the Wilmington Air Park, occupying over 200,000ft² with its MRO operations. The addition of this hangar represents a capacity expansion of nearly 50% for AMES.

 

Construction of the hangar was supported by the State of Ohio, as well as many community organizations. 

 

The hangar is 105,000ft² with 90ft ceiling height. The two-bay facility can house two large-body passenger or cargo aircraft service lines independently. Airframes as large as a Boeing 777 or other Class IV aircraft can be accommodated in the hangar bays. The hangar includes a composite clean room ensuring humidity controlled, dust-free conditions. The space includes a segregated paint room facility with heat-treat ovens. The hangar features a 15-ton crane capable of removing total tail sections, which enables AMES to provide specially certified repairs. This state-of-the-art crane system will serve as a major safety and efficiency benefit in the C Check process, a periodic inspection and repair program required of all airframes, and other heavy maintenance work performed at the facility.

 

“With the addition of this hangar, AMES is expanding our capabilities and revenue potential. Where we have been limited due to capacity constraints in the past, we can now attract larger fleet operators,” said Brady Templeton, president, Airborne Maintenance and Engineering Services. “AMES is currently operating four nose-to-tail dock lines in our three hangars, allowing us to perform over 50 C Checks annually,” Templeton added. 

 

The new hangar means job growth for the area.  “This expansion by AMES brings another 259 highly-skilled workers to the Wilmington Air Park,” said John Minor, JobsOhio president and chief investment officer. “This facility is a key maintenance hub for large aircraft and, we believe, a significant attraction asset for other aviation and logistics companies.” At the end of a three-year period, it is anticipated that AMES employment at the Air Park will exceed 640 individuals. 

 

The hangar was made possible by a joint financing effort. JobsOhio – in collaboration with local and regional partners – formulated a nearly $14.6 million financing package. The Clinton County Port Authority provided additional financial incentives and other donations amounting to over $2.7 million. Local grants from the City of Wilmington, Clinton County, and Community Improvement Corporation of Wilmington amounted to $525,000. In addition, the City of Wilmington Schools and Laurel Oaks Vocational School entered into a 23-year tax increment financing agreement.

 

AMES and the Port Authority worked diligently to focus on Ohio-based vendors for the project where it could, and nearly 75% of the dollars spent were with Ohio companies. BASCON Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio, served as the general contractor for the hangar. Konecranes, Springfield, Ohio, designed, manufactured and installed the crane system.