Image courtesy of VHB/MEPA Office
An expansion of private jet hangars at Hanscom Field in Bedford cannot move forward until developers submit information to support their assertion it would reduce greenhouse gas emissions and relieve demand for private jet service at Logan International Airport.
A third-party study predicts the proposal to add 17 hangars would generate 5,000 additional flights, Massachusetts Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Rebecca Tepper noted in ruling that the project’s current submission is inadequate.
Hanscom currently handles approximately 125,000 general aviation flights annually, six times the volume at Logan International Airport.
“Nearly all” of the 1,500 comment letters and a petition signed by 13,000 people were opposed to the project, Tepper wrote in the request for additional study. Climate activists from Extinction Rebellion Boston forced a brief closure at Hanscom on April 20 after breaching the security perimeter, resulting in at least 20 arrests.
Developers Runway Realty Ventures and North Airfield Ventures are seeking to build 17 hangars totaling 435,700 square feet to serve growing demand for private aircraft service. The project also includes renovation of a former U.S. Navy hangar to accommodate a total of 40 to 55 aircraft, according to the development team’s submission. The project would span 28 acres on a 49-acre site at 154 Hartwell Road in Bedford.
An analysis prepared by consultants Industrial Economics Inc. challenges developers’ assertion that the project would reduce “ferry flights” without passengers to pick up and drop off passengers at Hanscom, by giving private jet companies an incentive to relocate to Hanscom as their base.
The project also would exceed Massport’s own draft environmental impact report which projects an increase of 20 private aircraft by 2030 and 45 aircraft at Hanscom by 2040, Tepper noted.
In the ruling, Tepper said the developers no longer claim the project would reduce general aviation demand at Logan Airport.
“The DEIR indicates that the project is not intended to address the entirety of demand for business aviation (private jet) activity, but instead, seeks only to attract those aircraft owners and operators that wish to use Hanscom as their base location,” Tepper wrote.
Tepper instructed developers to submit a supplemental report backing their assertion that the project would reduce ferry flights and study “induced demand,” or the potential for increased flight activity generated by the expansion.
Massport declined to comment. A message was left with the development team seeking comment.
