CAHOKIA, Ill. – St. Louis Downtown Airport is credited with helping generate more than $422 million in economic impact for the bi-state region. This is due, in large part, to the completion of new infrastructure, increased flight operations and continued expansion by its largest tenant. Momentum is expected to continue through 2024 as business aviation steadily rebounds and tenants expand their employee rosters, adding to the more than 1,500 full-time and part-time jobs already supported by St. Louis Downtown Airport tenants and operations.

In August 2023, the airport completed construction of a new $5.4 million ground engine run-up and compass calibration pad to help support its tenants’ continued growth. The project – which received $5 million in state funding – benefits aircraft maintenance and manufacturing providers operating at the airport, and it will support high-tech aerospace maintenance and trade skill jobs at the airport as well.

The largest tenant at St. Louis Downtown Airport – Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation – is investing $28.5 million to expand its completions and outfitting operations at the airport. The expansion augments the company’s existing maintenance repair and overall facility, which has been operating at St. Louis Downtown Airport since 2017. It will result in the creation of 200 new jobs and the retention of nearly 500 jobs at that site.

The regional airport also saw flight operations and fuel sales continue to rebound from significant air travel impacts felt during the coronavirus pandemic. Flight operations at St. Louis Downtown Airport increased to a total of 104,156 during the fiscal year ending June 30. This data represents a 2.4 percent increase over numbers reported in Fiscal Year 2022 and a 7 percent increase over pre-pandemic totals reported in Fiscal Year 2019, marking the second consecutive year of growth. Data collected also shows that 1,606,416 gallons of fuel were sold during Fiscal Year 2023, an increase of 9.8 percent over Fiscal Year 2022.