Cantwell Celebrates Groundbreaking of Pangborn Airport General Aviation Terminal

08.12.24

Cantwell Celebrates Groundbreaking of Pangborn Airport General Aviation Terminal

Cantwell secured a $3.1 million federal grant for expansion project, nearly 40% of the overall project cost. Since 2022, Cantwell has championed $19 million in AIP funding for Pangborn Memorial

EAST WENATCHEE, WA - Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) joined local leaders at Pangborn Memorial Airport to celebrate the groundbreaking of the new General Aviation Terminal Building. Sen. Cantwell secured a $3,096,000 Congressionally Directed Spending award from the Federal Aviation Administration's Airport Improvement Program (AIP) for the rehabilitation project in FY2024.

"Aviation is a catalyst for other economic development," said Sen. Cantwell. "We know that in the United States, 80% of economic development happens within just 10 miles of an airport. So if you're not investing in your airport, you're not investing in your economy."

Sen. Cantwell continued: "All of this comes at a critical time in our state when we need to build capacity … we need this facility to be, again, the door to Wenatchee. To say to people, this county, and this region is open to business. And that we are going to continue to build capacity for opportunity and competitiveness right here in Washington state."

Sen. Cantwell has long championed federal funding for Pangborn Memorial Airport and investments in Washington state's rural airports. As Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee and lead architect of the recently enacted FAA Reauthorization law, Sen. Cantwell secured cost relief for small and non-hub airports like Pangborn and a historic $4 billion per year to fund airport infrastructure projects nationwide under the FAA's Airport Improvement Program (AIP). Since 2022, Sen. Cantwell has secured over $19 million in AIP funding to support growth and safe operations at Pangborn Memorial Airport.

The upgraded terminal building at Pangborn Memorial will provide state of the art facilities, including a pilot lounge, passenger terminal, and offices for the Airport Director and staff. In late 2023, flights out of Pangborn Airport showed a 4 percent increase in passenger seats filled. This new terminal expansion will help the airport accommodate an increase in passenger demand, as more travelers are looking to fly in and out of the greater Wenatchee area than ever before.

The new facility will also include a new space for a flight training program to create permanent jobs for flight instructors and flight program managers, along with graduates of the program who may go into STEM-related job fields. This expansion project will benefit the 125,000 Wenatchee Valley residents and will help support and attract major employers in agriculture and data center industries.

In 2022, Sen. Cantwell secured a $10 million Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grant to help reconstruct 7,100 feet of existing taxiway, taxiway lighting systems, and 28 airfield guidance signs to meet FAA standards. In 2023, Pangborn Memorial received $8.4 million from Cantwell-championed programs, and just in the first half of 2024, Pangborn received an additional $1.6 million.

Sen. Cantwell led drafting and negotiations of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2024 to improve aviation safety, bolster the aviation workforce pipeline, and enhance airport infrastructure for rural and small communities.

The FAA Reauthorization law increased funding for the AIP program from $3.35 billion per year to $4 billion per year starting in FY25 and provides specific cost share relief under the AIP program so smaller airports with limited infrastructure resources don't have to put as much money up front to receive federal funding. This relief helps small and non-hub airports like Pangborn Memorial utilize every available dollar of federal funding to improve airport infrastructure and meet important aviation safety needs.

The FAA law also authorized historic funding to support small and rural community air service via the Essential Air Service (EAS) and Small Community Air Service Development (SCASD) programs, with significant increases in comparison to recent years. In 2021, Sen. Cantwell also championed $25 billion for new airport infrastructure improvements in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Video from today's groundbreaking is available HERE, audio HERE, photos HERE, and transcript of Sen. Cantwell's remarks HERE.

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