Striking a very inquisitive tone, Mississippi Lieutenant Governor Delbert Hosemann had plenty of questions for local officials Wednesday during his tour of Hangar 450 at the Greenville Airport.
Tour would be a poor description of the dialogue between the state’s second highest elected official and all the parties involved. After Greenville Mayor Errick Simmons presented the lieutenant governor with a couple of souvenirs and introduced all pertinent people and entities contributing to the city’s burgeoning aerospace business, Hosemann only took a few paces inside the spacious building and began to ask questions. “Is the roof okay?,” he asked. “Does the company leasing the out in the contract how many light fixtures are needed?”
On hand to answer these questions were local experts like Mark Hooker Sr. of Hooker Engineering. When asked about the foundation of the building, Hooker responded. “It’s about eight inches thick. It was originally poured back in the 1980s for maintenance on 737s.”
South Delta Planning and Economic Development District officials Allyson Denson and Tommy Goodwin gave the governor both a general estimate of what it would cost to have all three hangars and more specifically the hangar being visited brought up to Department of Defense standards. The overall cost would be roughly $33 million while Hangar 450 would require about $5 million, most of which is an automated Foote suppression system. Goodwin explained that Greenville Kearnes Aerospace, the company leasing the facility, is about a month away from beginning to fill its first contracts. Hosemann went on to inquire about the building’s ventilation. “I love my Delta, but it’s hot,” Hosemann said. “And you’re working on some sophisticated equipment here.”
Perhaps looking to cultivate more support for the overall project, the lieutenant governor also requested a copy of the local study that was conducted at the outset of developing economically around the aerospace industry.
