The A380 is the new jet being manufactured by Airbus. It can carry up to 800 passengers, but its most practical use will be in the cargo industry. The Vice President of Airbus came over from France and met with engineers on our airport project over a year ago and minor changes were made to the design. This will make our airport the only U.S. site that will not have to perform a retrofit to accommodate this new plane. UPS and FEDEX have both ordered 10 A380s each and the Bay County Economic Development Alliance is currently in discussions with both companies about locating a major part of their operations here.

This will be the first airport built since 9/11, so Homeland Security is very interested in testing out new security measures here. Tech companies from around the world will see this as somewhat of a test lab for new technology and an opportunity to work closely with Homeland Security.

We’ve already talked to all the major airlines and they’ve all expressed great interest in our new airport, but the most interest has actually come from Southwest Airlines. We’ve met with them several times and they have said they are definitely coming to the Panhandle, it’s just a question of where. They are watching our project very closely and they say our time frame coincides with theirs.

The longer runway will open up our area to the Latin American markets for cargo operations and will attract other businesses and industry to our area.

At 4000 acres, the new airport site will be larger than Atlanta's Hartsfield Airport. Only about 1500 acres will be developed initially, but there will be plenty of room for expansion.

The current airport has the shortest commercial runway in the state of Florida, at about 6,300 feet. The new runway will eventually be between 10,000 and 12,000 feet.

There is industrial/commercial space already incorporated in the design of the airport and St. Joe will have another adjacent industrial/commercial site as well, so the potential to attract high-end, technical industry and research and development is as good as you'll find anywhere in the country. Our quality of life paired with improved transportation and the business opportunities that are available will set the stage for a major economic boom in Bay County.