Chennault International Airport has broken ground on a $4 million air cargo facility.
Construction on the 10,000-square-foot facility is expected to take roughly 12 to 18 months.
President Denise Rau tells KLPC-TV Chennault leadership and the board of commissioners began serious discussions about an air cargo facility in 2012. She tells The American Press that pushing Chennault into a new line of business will create future growth opportunities for the airport.
“We have talked at conferences and all of these places with industry leaders about why Lake Charles should be a place for air cargo,” she said. “It just makes sense, you know, Houston’s a busy, busy airport, and they fly around in a queue for a while trying to get that cargo down here. Here you buzz in, buzz out.”
According to The American Press, funding for the new facility includes $3 million in state capital outlay funding, with Chennault Airport Authority covering the balance.
Chennault’s origins date back to its use as a Cold War-era Air Force base. The U.S. federal government bought and leased Calcasieu Parish property for military use in 1941 for World War II and again in 1958, for the future Strategic Air Command installation.
Today, Chennault International Airport is a hub of aerospace activity located along the Interstate 10 corridor in Lake Charles. It is home to a variety of tenants, including Northrop Grumman and Citadel Completions.
