Garrett to Start BBJ Completions in Santa Barbara

Garrett Aviation Services will refurbish the former Tracor facility at the Santa Barbara Municipal Airport as a center for outfitting Boeing Business Jets.

The remodel will result in two 40,000-square-foot hangars with 10,000 square feet of shop and office space. The hangar complex will operate as an extension of Garrett's current Van Nuys, CA, completion center, known as The Jet Center, which is outfitting the first two BBJs to be converted by the company.

Subsequent BBJ work will be moved to Santa Barbara, according to Ron Frederick, president. Work is scheduled to begin in March 1999. Additional floor space is available in upper floors of the building.

The Santa Barbara hangars will each fit two BBJs comfortably and up to three in a pinch. A production rate of up to 10 BBJs per year is planned. Garrett already has four BBJ completions under contract or letter of intent and expects to secure further sales by year-end, Frederick said.

Dennis Walden, a 26-year industry veteran, will lead Garrett's Santa Barbara operations. The company held a job fair last weekend to determine the availability of key aerospace technicians. Santa Barbara's high cost of living could make it difficult to attract the interior craftsman needed to custom-craft plush BBJ interiors. Certain cabin furnishings will initially be built in Van Nuys and shipped to Santa Barbara.