The Salina Airport Authority has developed
the premier airport and industrial center in the Midwest.
The board of directors and staff are proactive in providing
the citizens of
Salina,
Saline County
and
North Central Kansas
with a center that support business and industry, which, in
turn, provides jobs and payroll that benefit the region.
The Salina
Airport Authority is home to the Salina Municipal Airport,
the Salina Aviation Service Center and the Salina Airport
Industrial Center.
The Salina
Airport Authority is a body corporate and politic. The
Authority was created by the City of Salina in April 1965
pursuant to the authority granted by the City by the surplus
property and public airport authority act of the State of
Kansas. The Authority was created for the purpose of
accepting as surplus property portions of the former
Schilling A.F.B., which was closed by the United States
Department of Defense in June 1965. By quitclaim deed the
Authority received over 2,900 acres of land and numerous
buildings for the purpose of operating and developing the
Salina Municipal Airport and the Salina Airport Industrial
Center. The Authority is managed and controlled by a
five-member Board of Directors appointed by the Salina City
Commission
The Salina
Municipal Airport is the only commercial service airport
serving Salina/Saline County and the 22-county area, which
comprises North Central Kansas. The Airport also services
the corporate, business, private aviation and flight
training needs of industry, business and individuals in the
area. The Airport is also used by Kansas State University
at Salina (KSUS). The campus of KSUS is located within the
boundaries of the Authority adjacent to the main Airport
runway. The college offers degrees in professional flight
training, airframe and power plant maintenance, and avionics
technology.
The Salina
Municipal Airport and Airport Industrial Center is home for
80 businesses and organizations. Forty-five of the
businesses and organizations are tenants of the Authority.
One of the primary functions of the Authority is to
facilitate the continued growth of jobs and payroll at the
Airport and Airport Industrial Center. The Authority works
in partnership with the City of Salina, Saline County, and
the Salina Area Chamber of Commerce for the retention of
existing business and industry and the recruitment of new
business and industry.
The
Salina Municipal Airport
is home base for a wide variety of businesses and
operations. These include Great Lakes Airlines, America Jet at SLN, Flower
Aviation, Kansas Army National Guard Aviation Support
Facility, Kansas State University at Salina, Kansas Highway
Patrol Aviation, Professional Flight Training, LC, Hawker
Beechcraft Corporation and the corporate flight departments
for Blue Beacon International, Geoprobe
Systems, Pepsi Cola-Salina, Plains Environmental, Premier
Pneumatics, Inc., and Bradley Trucking Co. The Airports two
world-class FBOs annually deliver almost 4 million gallons
of fuel to over 7,000 business jets and 5,000 government and military
aircraft. This has earned the Airport the recognition s
“America’s Fuel Stop.” The air traffic control tower is busy
during the year with aircraft operations exceeding 80,000.
Industry
leaders world-wide know that the
SLN Aviation Service Center
has a winning combination of elements that make it the best
location for aviation businesses.
The
Salina Airport Industrial Center
offers a diverse industrial base, which makes it an
attractive location for a variety of businesses. Some of the
world-class operations located at the Salina Airport
Industrial Center include ElDorado National, Inc., Geoprobe
Systems, Kansas Army National Guard, Vortex Valves and
Schwan’s Global Supply Chain.