Mesquite continues to increase its storage capacity for aircrafts — again.
The city has a bid out for a new box hangar, which is basically a garage for aircraft.
Airport Manager Eric Pratt said the new facility will be 15,000 square feet, with a door opening height of 28 feet. It’s expected to cost around $2.2 million from start to finish.
Officials hope the hangar will be complete by early 2023.
Currently, the Mesquite Metro Airport contains 166 hangars and houses 215 aircrafts. The new hangar will enable the airport to host about five more planes, depending on their size.
Last year, the city announced its plans to expand the airport, which generates tax revenue for the city.
The airport’s expansion and tax outlook is promising, data shows: in 2021, the airport’s taxable value was $25.6 million, Pratt said.
The airport fully funds itself through with fuel sales and aircraft hangar rentals.
Airport traffic has also increased by more than 50% in recent years; previously, the airport had 65,000 operations annually, which are takeoffs or landings. In 2020, the airport saw over 85,000 operations, according to the city.
In 2021, it broke its own record again, bringing in more than 100,000 operations. This year, the airport is on track to exceed that number, Pratt said.
The Mesquite Metro Airport was busy enough last year that it ranked 164th among 520 U.S. airports with an air traffic control tower.
“If you actually equate that to a minute basis, it’s about every five and a half minutes we have an aircraft on the runway,” Pratt said last year. “And that’s every day, all year long.”
