A new study on the economic impact of airports on communities in Missouri shows the Monett Regional Airport has risen on the list of major contributors and continues to outpace facilities in much larger cities.
According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, which prepared the economic impact study for 2012, “There are currently 100,621 jobs in Missouri that are in some way connected to the airport system and its activities. These jobs have an annual estimated payroll of $3.1 billion. When all economic activities are considered, total annual economic output associated with the system or airports in Missouri is estimated at $11.1 billion.”
There are only nine commercial airports in the state, and 99 public use general aviation airports, which includes Monett. The general aviation airports provide 3,957 jobs in airport businesses, 863 indirect jobs and 2,629 jobs due to the airport activity.
The Monett Regional Airport is responsible for 82 direct jobs, with a total payroll of $4.2 million and a total economic output of $13.1 million.
Monett ranked seventh in the state in economic output out of all the general aviation airports.
By comparison, the commercial airport in Joplin, the seventh largest commercial airport in the state, has 248 total jobs, a total payroll of $10.2 million and a total economic output of almost $27 million.
The other nearby general aviation airports ranked accordingly:
* Aurora: 12 jobs, $334,000 payroll, nearly $1.4 million total economic output.
* Cassville: six jobs, $104,000 payroll, $433,000 total economic output.
* Mt. Vernon: two jobs, $49,000 payroll, $421,000 total economic output.
* Neosho: five jobs, $120,000 payroll, $341,000 total economic output.
The report cited airports for providing a variety of resources that enhance the quality of life in communities through aviation services. These include patient and doctor transport, agricultural application, search and rescue, traffic monitoring, real estate, disaster relief staging areas, law enforcement and prisoner transport, natural resource monitoring and aerial mapping.
http://www.monett-times.com/story/2026178.html