US business aviation MRO West Star Aviation is planning for major facility expansion at its East Alton, Illinois; Grand Junction, Colorado; and Chattanooga, Tennessee locations.

Plans for the St Louis Regional airport facility in East Alton, Illinois include a new 40,000 sq ft general use hangar and an additional 48,000 sq ft dedicated paint shop and hangar that will significantly increase paint capacity at the location. These additions will bring the operational footprint to over 400,000 sq ft of office, hangar and shop space, with over 200,000 sq ft of ramp space.

At the Grand Junction Regional airport facility in Colorado there will be a new 40,000 sq ft hangar with an additional 35,000 sq ft of shop and office space, including a larger interior shop, a complete composite shop and tool room. The new facility will be focused on the expansion of large aircraft capability and is slated to be complete in 2023. The expansion will increase the location's operational footprint to approximately 379,000 sq ft of office, shop and hangar space.

A new hangar is planned for West Star's Lovell Field facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee that will consist of 40,000 sq ft of active hangar space and an additional 17,000 sq ft of shop and support space. Expansion plans also include the lease of an existing 20,000 sq ft hangar on the field that will be leased from the airport. Altogether the operational footprint will increase from 179,828 sq ft to approximately 266,000 sq ft.

“West Star has been one of the fastest growing business MROs for past 20 years," says CEO Jim Rankin. "This expansion plan is our most aggressive investment in our future to date. We are committed to implementing sustainable growth that benefits both our customers and our employees. I'm very proud of West Star's 1,500 employees who have continued to provide our unique, industry-leading experience to our customers even during these recent dynamic times. These expansion projects will ensure West Star Aviation will be well positioned to meet customer needs for the next five years and beyond.”