(NORTH LAS VEGAS) KTNV — Hundreds of pilots and hangar owners at the North Las Vegas Airport are set to meet with aviation officials Wednesday night to voice concerns about their future at the facility.
WATCH | North Las Vegas reporter Jhovani Carrillo spoke with an attorney representing hangar owners ahead of the meeting:
The meeting comes as airport officials consider plans to expand one of the runways to accommodate larger private jets flying into Southern Nevada for events like Formula 1, New Year’s, Super Bowl, Sphere concerts and other similar events. The move is intended to relieve congestion at Harry Reid International Airport.
Clark County owns the land underneath the airport after acquiring the property from North Las Vegas, which in turn got it from the legendary billionaire and aviation pioneer Howard Hughes.
Today, it's home to flight schools, aircraft maintenance facilities, training and plenty of private airplane owners, many of whom are ex-military members. They own the hangar buildings and have made upgrades to them over the years. The county has signed ground leases for the hangars, most of which carry a 30-year term that doesn't end for years.
But more recently, people who have sought to buy or sublease hangars have been told by Clark County's aviation department that leases won't be extended beyond their current terms, worrying current tenants that their days may be numbered.
Jeffrey Lustick, an attorney representing the North Las Vegas Hangar Owners Group, said the uncertainty has left hangar owners in limbo.
"The airport here in North Las Vegas has been under some growing pains, and we see a big influx of jets coming in, so the push is on to find places to put these jets and get them to buy fuel from the county, and so hangars like this are in the way," Lustick said. "And we've been told time and time again these hangars would be taken over by the county and torn down."
Officials have previously said they do not intend to push anyone out. However, Lustick said hangar owners have not yet reached an agreement with airport officials.
Lustick has stored and maintained his plane at the North Las Vegas Airport for the past five years. For him, flying is more than a hobby.
"There's nothing like the freedom of flight," Lustick said. "You fly over the land ... and you see things people have seen for generations."
About 34 hangars have leases expiring within the next 18 months, adding urgency to the negotiations.
"We are getting to a point where these issues need to be figured out," Lustick said.
Lustick said hangar owners are not asking for the larger jets to be removed — only that both groups be allowed to operate at the airport together.
"It would be a contract that would allow us to keep our hangar here," Lustick said. "We can coexist, we can work with the big jets. We are not asking for them to be moved out."
Hangar owners are meeting with the Director of Aviation and Commissioner William McCurdy to share their concerns.
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