Boeing to add 400 jobs at Cecil Airport in Jacksonville

Boeing will add about 400 more jobs at Cecil Airport in Jacksonville by moving into a new hangar that will be built by the Jacksonville Aviation Authority, marking a major expansion for Boeing's presence at the airfield on the city's Westside, officials said Thursday.

Boeing, which currently employs about 350 people at Cecil Airport, entered into a 25-year building and land lease agreement with the aviation authority, which owns Cecil Airport.

“This announcement is one of the most significant in the JAA’s history and a testament to what an economic powerhouse Cecil Airport is for Northeast Florida.” Jacksonville Aviation Authority CEO Mark VanLoh said.

The average wage of the new jobs will be more than $65,000 plus benefits, JAX Chamber officials told the Jacksonville Aviation Authority board when it unanimously approved the agreement during a special meeting Thursday.

"The Boeing announcement is fantastic," said state Rep. Wyman Duggan, R-Jacksonville, whose district contains Cecil Airport, the former Navy base converted into Cecil Commerce Center.

"It's one of the economic jewels for the whole county and the region," Duggan said of the commerce center. "It really is an economic center of gravity for my House district."

Boeing has had maintenance, repair and overhaul operations since 1999 at Cecil Airport. The company expects to be doing aircraft work out of the new hangar by early 2024.

Aaron Bowman, senior vice president of business development for JAX Chamber, said the new hangar will enable Boeing to consolidate its Cecil Airport operations. The immediate impact will be keeping 350 jobs in Jacksonville by continuing work on F-16 and F18 aircraft.

On top of that, the larger hangar will accommodate bigger aircraft so Boeing can compete across the full scope of Department of Defense contracts for work at Cecil Airport.

"What it means to Cecil and Boeing is this opens the door to all kinds of new opportunities," Bowman said after the board meeting. "You've got hangar space and ramp space that allows for really any size aircraft."

Bowman said that will lead to at least 403 more jobs at Cecil Airport.

The Jacksonville Aviation Authority will construct new buildings for lease to Boeing on about 30 acres on the northeast side of Cecil Airport, near Boeing's current location at the airport.

The new construction will deliver almost  270,000 square feet of hangar space and more than 100,000 square feet of office and support shop space, according to Boeing. Construction will start in fall 2021 and Boeing plans to start operations in the new facilities in January 2024, the company said.

Bowman, who also serves on Jacksonville City Council, said the combined investment by the aviation authority and Boeing will likely be in the $150 million range. He said talks with Boeing about the expansion started five years ago and then picked up steam over the past year and half.

“This investment in facility improvements supports our ability to deliver on current and future defense services work at the Cecil Field site and aligns with Boeing’s infrastructure optimization efforts,” said Warren Helm, Boeing Cecil Field site leader, in the company's announcement.

Since 1999, Boeing has modified and upgraded about 1,000 aircraft for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, according to the company.

Boeing has worked on the F/A-18 A-D Hornet, F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler. Boeing has a flight control repair center that does structural repairs for F/A-18 A-F and EA-18G flight control surfaces. Cecil Airport also is where Boeing transforms F/A-18 Super Hornets into flight demonstration aircraft for the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angel squadron.

Boeing also uses Cecil Airport as base for turning retired F-16s into "the next generation of combat training and testing" for aerial targets, the company said.

The aviation authority board's vote Thursday on the lease agreement with Boeing marks the second time in a month that it has given the go-ahead for a new hangar at Cecil Airport.

The board previously approved development of a new home for maintenance and support of the U.S. Navy's P-8A Poseidon aircraft. That 39,000-square-foot airplane hangar and office facility on the airport's northwest side will be leased to ManTech Advanced Systems International Inc. and be ready in 2022.