Yingling Aviation is embarking on a big expansion of its site at Dwight D Eisenhower National Airport in Wichita, Kansas. Building work has begun on a new 23,000ft² (2,137m²) facility that will be used for aircraft avionics and maintenance.
The company has also leased a 50,000ft² (4,650m²) space that includes a paint hangar capable of accommodating a Hawker 800 mid-size jet, a prep hangar, and areas for service, aircraft interior work, as well as office space. The expansion also includes parking and ramp space.
“We have completed an agreement to lease the facilities on the east runway (1R/19L) at Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport, immediately north of our current facilities,” said Lynn Nichols, CEO at the company. “Obviously this is logistically a great fit for our operations.”
The facilities were recently occupied by Hawker Beechcraft Services and vacated when Textron Aviation combined them with the Textron Aviation Service Center across the east runway last year.
“The opportunity for Yingling to offer aircraft paint services has long been on our list of new services to provide, so having these facilities, particularly next door, is a perfect situation for us,” said Nichols. “Adding paint will complement our interior, avionics and aircraft maintenance services. Generally speaking, when customers have their aircraft painted, they often want avionics upgrades, interior refurbishment and timely maintenance items done at the same time. Adding these paint capabilities positions Yingling Aviation in the marketplace as a full-service MRO.”
“The newly added 50,000ft² facility will undergo a major facelift and renovation inside and outside over the next year,” continued Nichols. “This will also result in Yingling adding more jobs. We’re continuing to add A&P mechanics and avionics technicians and now we’ll be hiring aircraft painters as well. We already have several customers lined up for aircraft paint work, so we will be off and running as soon as the facilities are ready. We’re planning on a mid-January 2019 start date for paint services.”
“The recent availability of additional hangar space contiguous with the Yingling Aviation complex was a natural and obvious fit to support their growth as both a full-service MRO and FBO,” said Wichita Airport Authority’s Brad Christopher.
“The Airport Authority is proud to support and partner with one of its most important and valuable tenant stakeholders. This is a tremendous economic opportunity for Yingling Aviation, Eisenhower National Airport and the Wichita community, and it is our privilege to be a part of it.”
