Cargo giant DHL Express and authorities in Wilmington, Ohio, are reportedly close to an agreement allowing DHL to donate Wilmington Air Park, the airport it formerly used as a hub, to the community. DHL closed the Wilmington hub over the past year in a cost-cutting move and laid off more than 8,000 workers, which naturally devastated the local economy. There are still about 700 people working at the airport, which the air freight company owns, and the proposal would see it become a publicly owned airport and industrial area. “DHL Express and the Clinton County Port Authority are pleased about the prospects of this solution supporting the region and people of Wilmington, and are very hopeful that such a donation could serve as a stimulus for redevelopment and future commerce in Southwestern Ohio,” the two said in a joint news release. Wilmington would gain a pretty capable airport from the deal.
The air park has parallel runways, one more than 10,000 feet by 150 feet and the other 9,000 by 150, each capable of handling the largest aircraft and loaded up with weather equipment and navaids. There are a lot of big buildings and hangars between the two runways, all served by a network of taxiways. There’s a massive ramp on the northwest side. The facility was a former Air Force base and is minutes from Wilmington.
