US MRO West Star Aviation has officially launched the expansion programme for its facility at Lovell Field in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It marked the occasion with a groundbreaking ceremony on 13 July, with construction starting the same day.

The all-new hangar complex will consist of 40,000 sq ft of active hangar space and an additional 17,000 sq ft of shop and support space. Additionally, West Star has started retrofitting one of its existing hangars to include a new design studio, customer accommodations and nearly double its interior shop capacity. The complete planned expansion at the Chattanooga location will increase the total operational footprint from 179,828 sq ft to approximately 262,816 sq ft effectively. The construction should be complete in less than a year, with a June 2023 expected completion date.

“We are very excited to start this expansion project and look forward to completion of the construction, bringing over 100 more jobs to the local community along with offering our valued customers the additional space to complete their maintenance projects,” says general manager Steve Goede.

West Star would like to thank those that attended the event in celebration of this historic moment for the city and company combined.