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Wichita Airport Authority approves 31‑year lease with WSU Tech for hangar and campus expansion at Jabara Airport
Summary
The Wichita Airport Authority approved a 31-year land lease allowing WSU Tech to build an 85,000-square-foot hangar and expand aviation training at Colonel James Jabara Airport; the institution will pay a reduced rate as a public educational entity.
The Wichita Airport Authority voted to approve a 31‑year land lease with Wichita State University Tech to expand the National Center for Aviation Training footprint at Colonel James Jabara Airport.
Airport Director Jesse Romo said WSU Tech will lease about 9.6 acres to construct an approximately 85,000‑square‑foot hangar and associated educational facilities to support programs including professional pilot, emerging aviation and advanced air mobility. WSU Tech President Sherry Utash addressed the authority in support of the agreement and said the expansion aligns with workforce development goals.
Under the negotiated lease — which reflects WSU Tech’s status as a Kansas public educational institution — the rent will be set at 50% of the published land rental rate for Jabara Airport. The authority noted the project grew out of a prior state grant that financed airfield pavement infrastructure; WSU Tech will own the facility during the agreement term, but the airport retains reversion rights at expiration or if the use changes.
The authority approved the lease 6–0 with one abstention (Council member Tuttle recused for conflict). Staff said the ramp construction to serve the site is more than 90% complete and that the law department reviewed lease documents as to form. The airport will return to the authority with any future amendments or construction agreements tied to the lease.
Board members and WSU Tech leaders framed the project as part of a long-term strategy to sustain Wichita’s aviation workforce pipeline and to support new aviation sectors such as advanced air mobility.
