US MRO specialist West Star Aviation is expanding its St Louis Regional airport in East Alton, Illinois. It officially broke ground on 6 July.

The expansion will add 75,700 sq ft of space, bringing the total facility to just over 500,000 sq ft of hangar, back shop, modification and paint space. In all, the expansion will include 40,000 sq ft of new hangar capacity, 22,300 sq ft of additional back shop space and 13,400 sq ft of additional storage space.

West Star is working with Contegra Construction, one of the Midwest region's largest general contractors, and the St. Louis Regional airport. Site preparation will start this summer with completion expected in early spring 2024.

“The current expansion project for East Alton, Illinois will ensure West Star Aviation will be well-positioned to meet our customers' needs. This expansion, along with the new hangar in Chattanooga, Tennessee scheduled to open for business at the end of this month, shows our continued commitment to implementing sustainable growth that benefits our customers, employees and the surrounding communities,” notes Jim Rankin, CEO, West Star Aviation.

“The recent rapid growth in the MRO industry has accelerated the need to add additional space to our facilities, allowing us to better serve our valued customers in a timely manner,” adds Brian Bauwens, general manager (ALN).

“Contegra Construction is proud to partner with West Star Aviation to lead the design-build process for Hangar 67. This is the third hanger project Contegra has partnered with West Star in the past 10 years,” concludes Jared Lengermann, project director, Contegra Construction.