Northwest Aerospace News April | May Issue No. 2 | Page 38

T
he Spokane International Airport
is owned by the City of Spokane and
Spokane County, which has the ability
to leverage airport assets to most
benefit the region’s industrial growth.
In 2017 the West Plains/Airport Area
Public Development Authority (PDA)
was formed. This includes all of prop-
erty/land encompassed by Spokane In-
ternational Airport. This is the region’s
first ever City of Spokane-Spokane
County PDA, fostering collaboration
and foresight in future planning.
The Spokane Airport Board has an
initiative in place to release 1,000
acres of land that is no longer used for
aeronautical purposes, land that would
then be available to the private sector,
allowing for industrial development.
Industrial development has long been
a part of the airport’s land use model.
In addition to the commercial airlines,
the airfield is home to tenants such
as International Aerospace Coatings,
Aero-Flite, Merlyn Products, Signa-
ture Flight Support, U.S. Customs, a
Horizon Air aircraft maintenance base,
and Absolute Aviation Services. West
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NORTHWEST AEROSPACE NEWS
Plains, the name for the area surround-
ing the airport, not only supports a
thriving aerospace manufacturing
base including Triumph Composites
Systems, United Technologies, Exotic
Metals Forming Company, L&M
Precision Fabrication, and Wemco, it’s
also home to a growing trucking and
logistics cluster.
All along the I-90 Aerospace Cor-
ridor’s extensive networking infra-
structure, there is still an impressive
breadth of room to grow. The region
includes an abundance of afford-
able development-primed land, and
underutilized commercial and military
FAA regulated airspace in Montana
and in the Moses Lake, Washington
area. Recognizable brands in aero-
space supply include names like
Kaiser Aluminum, UTC Aerospace
Systems, AMI Metals, Tamarack Aero-
space, and Zodiac Aerospace. You’ll
also find a well-rounded host of sheet
metal fabrication, injection molding,
CNC machining and large-scale metal
fabrication, thermoforming, composite
manufacturing and assembly, tooling
and fixture manufacturing, and rapid
prototyping and 3-D printing, to name
a few. Companies offering program
integration, electronic manufacturing
and engineering, laser, waterjet and
die cutting services also support and
strengthen the aerospace industry in
the region.
Robin Toth of Greater Spokane
Incorporated expressed that one of
the driving goals of the Corridor is to
introduce buyers and potential new
businesses to the “best of both worlds”
our region has to offer.
“The level of aerospace ex-
pertise and skilled workforce,
tax benefits, cost of living,
AND the incredible quality of
life for families and employ-
ees, is a compelling story for
our region — one that many
companies find themselves
evaluating when considering
new locations or expansions,”
Toth said.