(Photo provided, Gary/Chicago International Airport)
In Gary, Gary/Chicago International Airport says it is accelerating its Phase 1 development of cargo services expansion by allocating a $9.8 million grant from the state of Indiana to the project. The airport says the timing of this grant allows them to fully construct its full allocation of eight wide-bodied aircraft parking positions simultaneously, which will be housed on roughly 25 acres of concrete ramp as part of its Phase 1 cargo expansion. Construction for this Phase 1 expansion is now scheduled to be completed by the end of 2025. In April the airport acquired 4.7 acres of land, a news release said.
“We are very pleased to be able to construct all of our planned plane parking in one fell swoop versus a more sequential process over a period of years, given how quickly our cargo sector continues to grow,” said Gary/Chicago International Airport (GCIA) Executive Director Dan Vicari. “We are very grateful to Congressman Frank Mrvan and the State of Indiana for their continued support and assistance in securing the funding for this critical Phase 1 cargo expansion.”
GCIA has seen extensive growth since 2015, starting with the expansion of the airport’s main runway to nearly 9,000 feet, making it the second longest runway in the region after O’Hare International Airport. This expansion has allowed the airport to service larger, heavier aircraft. GCIA opened its U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) facility in 2018, allowing air travelers from any international destination to frequent the airport without needing to clear customs elsewhere. In 2020, GCIA began cargo service operations via UPS, and GCIA says it now ranks 3rd in the State of Indiana for its freight volume.
2024 saw multiple milestones, including unveiling a new website, breaking ground on a new $12 million, 47,000 square foot aviation hangar as well as breaking ground on Phase 1 of a planned $67 million cargo services infrastructure investment. This effort coincided with the airport agreeing to a long-term extension with UPS. The year also saw the airport awarded a $1.7 million Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) grant to design and engineer a new, state-of-the-art airport traffic control tower.
