Boeing has opened a new maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) hangar for military aircraft and a component operations repair facility in Jacksonville.
The site expansion is expected to create more than 300 jobs.
The 385,000-square-foot MRO hangar is designed to help Boeing better serve its military customers, including the U.S. Navy and U.S. Air Force, with state-of-the-art maintenance and repair support.
“This new facility enables us to strengthen the support to our customers’ operational readiness and grow our skilled workforce within the Jacksonville community,” said Rhiannon Sherrard, Boeing Jacksonville executive site director.
Spanning 275,000 square feet with more than eight hangar bays, and an additional 110,000 square feet of office and support space, the new area can accommodate up to eight P-8 multi-mission maritime patrol aircraft. The ramp area can accommodate up to 14 fighter jets, or two wide-body and five narrow-body aircraft.
The facility will further enable Boeing's work upgrading warfare capabilities and mission readiness for P-8, in addition to maintaining F/A-18 Super Hornets for the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels as well as F/A-18 structural repairs and avionics upgrades for fleet aircraft. Additionally, Boeing will perform upgrades to KC-46 jets.
Over time, the facility will incorporate new technologies such as autonomous aircraft inspection, which streamlines processes and enhances efficiency by reducing aircraft downtime and increasing safety and quality measures for military operators.
Boeing also announced the opening of its new 150,000-square-foot component operations repair facility, located adjacent to the MRO facility. That building will work on flight control surfaces and parts in support of F/A-18 and KC-46 aircraft and will be fully operational in the coming months.
Since 2018, Boeing has contributed more than $600,000 to the Jacksonville community. During the event, Boeing announced a new $50,000 grant to the Communities in Schools Jacksonville Student Enrichment Program and $50,000 toward Veterans Florida’s Veteran Employment and Training Services.
The new facilities bring the total Boeing site footprint to more than 546,000 square feet.
