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Southwest Illinois News is designed & hosted by the Moore Design Group. How To Reach Us: St. Louis Front Page P.O. Box 1354 St. Louis, MO 63188 Voice: 314-771-0200 Fax: 314-771-0300 To advertise, contact: advertising@slfp.com To submit news, contact: editor@slfp.com |
MASCOUTAH, IL, (SWI-News.com), August 26, 2010 - As an MD 11 aircraft landed on the runway at MidAmerica St. Louis Airport (BLV) early Thursday afternoon, airport officials celebrated the successful completion of a critical cargo test flight from China to the airport. In a release, Mark Kern, Chairman of St. Clair County, said, "Today is another milestone day for MidAmerica Airport. We've worked long and hard to acquire this route, and the success of the first flight is a clear sign that the effort was worth it. With the start of this new trade route, we believe the overall cargo operations here at MidAmerica will really take off." The purpose of the flight, which departed from Shanghai Pudong International Airport (KPVG), was to complete all the procedures, communications and logistics coordination required for a long-term air commerce trade route into MidAmerica from Asia and back again. The test flight carried 83 kilo tons of general cargo. Sky Lease Cargo, based in Greensboro, NC, operated the aircraft, and Beijing Expedient Services and Transportation LTD (EST Cargo) of China chartered the flight, consolidated the freight in Shanghai and coordinated the loading. With the success of the first flight, regular air cargo service from Asia to MidAmerica St. Louis Airport is expected to begin in the fourth quarter of 2010. The news of the new air commerce trade route comes exactly one week after The Boeing Company announced a long-term lease with MidAmerica and plans to invest $7 million in a new manufacturing facility at the airport. The new trade route is six years in the making, starting back in 2004 when MidAmerica Airport and St. Clair County officials began working to lay the necessary foundation to attract international cargo. In 2005, the airport completed the cargo terminal, and 3,600 acres of the airport became part of the Foreign Trade Zone 31. MidAmerica Airport was named a U.S. Port of Entry (# 4581) in 2006 and received its first international shipment from South America. Two years later, the airport completed refrigeration capability and began welcoming regular flights from Latin America carrying fresh flowers, produce and herbs, along with pharmaceuticals and other perishable air freight. With Boeing now set to be utilizing the entire existing cargo terminal by the first quarter of 2011, the airport will be building another warehouse to host the perishable capability as well as general cargo in order to continue to facilitate existing and future international cargo operations.
GRANITE CITY, IL, (SWI-News.com), August 25, 2010 - The Tri-City Regional Port District celebrated the $6 million TIGER grant award that will fund the construction of the new South Rail Loop at the Port District. The South Rail Loop will provide 9,600 track feet of new main line rail that has been designed to support the intermodal transfer of commodities within a new inland waterway barge harbor to be known as the South Harbor. Originally created in 1959, Tri-City Regional Port District is a special-purpose unit of local government. The Port's activities include their operators loading or unloading 2,500 barges each year; rail and truck bulk transfer facilities for agricultural products, steel, fertilizer and asphalt; foreign trade zone operations; commercial warehousing; industrial property development; office space leasing; recreational facilities and military-family housing, among other activities. Grants for the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery Program (TIGER Grants) are a part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). In September of 2009, the Tri-City Regional Port District (TCRPD) applied to receive one of these grants from the Maritime Administration - U.S. Department of Transportation (MARAD - USDOT) in order to help fund construction of the planned Intermodal Hub and connecting rail lines. The $6 million awarded will fund not only the South Rail Loop, but also ten Levee Relief Wells that are integral elements of the new Intermodal Hub. U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and U.S. Congressman Jerry Costello were on hand for the event, along with leadership and tenants from Tri-City Regional Port District and dozens of other civic and business leaders from across the Metro East.
By Betty Moore, SLFP.com MASCOUTAH, IL, (SWI-News.com), August 19, 2010 - The Boeing Company has announced that it is expanding its St. Louis-area operations with the planned opening of a new manufacturing facility at MidAmerica Airport in Mascoutah. Several hundred people, including U.S., state and local officials, Boeing employees, and the media attended a ceremony today in Mascoutah. "Today marks the beginning of what I expect will be a long-term relationship with Boeing, and I expect we will be back here to announce more good news and more jobs in the future," said U.S. Congressman Jerry Costello (D-IL). Costello said that when Boeing opens a manufacturing facility, it means jobs for today and the future as well. He emphasized that when Boeing makes a decision to locate a facility, generally, other businesses will follow as well. "That's what we hope and expect with this site today," said Costello. Following the unveiling of Boeing's logo, Costello noted that Boeing is the largest aerospace company in the world and the U.S. number one exporter. "It's a $70 billion company with a 157,000 employees in seventy countries as has been listed as #28 in the Forbes' Fortune 50 of companies making profits." Boeing Defense, Space & Security (BDS) President and CEO Dennis Muilenburg received a loud round of applause as he made the announcement. "Boeing is proud to announce that we are opening our very first manufacturing facility in the state of Illinois, right here at MidAmerica." In his remarks, Muilenburg said that the 50,000 square-foot facility will be focused on manufacturing. "Our plan is to do assembly and subassembly work. It will support a number of different Boeing product lines. We expect to have the facility opening in the fourth quarter of this year. We expect to have an initial 75 jobs up and running by the first quarter of 2011. These jobs will be high value add, high technology jobs in the aerospace and defence sector," stated Muilenburg." Muilenburg confirmed that the facility's proximity to BDS headquarters, the presence of an established, skilled work force, and the infrastructure at MidAmerica Airport make it an ideal choice as Boeing looks for opportunities to expand its core business. Following the ceremony, St. Clair County Chief Judge John Baricevic, former St. Clair County Board Chairman, acknowledged that after many setbacks and criticism, the announcement was good news. "Since the Airport opened, we have been struck with a number of major economic factors not of our choosing - 9/11 as an example. Waiting this long is not good news, but it was bound to happen." He noted that a lot of people had a vision, including Congressman Costello, former Governor Thompson and the community. "I was fortunate to be in a place were I could lead an army that was ready to march in the right direction," stated Baricevic.
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