Miami's Business Assets Key in LATAM's Decision to Expand Operations

(Miami, FL – Dec. 18, 2015) – Miami’s gateway status, aviation infrastructure, and highly skilled and multilingual workforce, led to the growth of LAN Cargo, an affiliate of LATAM Airlines Group that recently inaugurated its first maintenance hangar in the U.S. at Miami International Airport.

 “This expansion is a testament to LATAM’s plan to continue to grow in Miami,” The Beacon Council President & CEO Larry K. Williams said. “Building this state-of-the-art maintenance hangar is the natural next step in handling such a high-volume of cargo cost-effectively at MIA.”  

 The Beacon Council assisted LATAM Airlines Group, one of the largest cargo airlines in the world, with the expansion by working with Miami-Dade County, the Florida Department of Transportation, and Enterprise Florida, the state’s economic development organization, to assemble a financial package that would make the new hangar financially feasible.  The Beacon Council identified and accessed an FDOT fund that is typically used for public access roads and applied it to a taxiway which helped to close the funding gap.

 The new 97,000 square-foot state-of-the-art maintenance hangar at MIA adds more than 100 new higher-wage direct jobs and $15 million in new capital investment. 

“High skill, high wage jobs have a significant ripple effect on our economy,” Williams said. “We are working closely with the academic community to be sure we have top talent in Miami-Dade County to meet the needs of companies like LATAM.”

 The company also recently received a certification for cargo ground operations and facilities. Said Christian Ureta, CEO LAN CARGO, an affiliate of LATAM Airlines Group. “Compliance with these standards will allow us to grow and develop our ground operation more efficiently, improve resource management and allocation, and reduce our operation’s environmental impact and carbon footprint.” Read the company press release.

About The Beacon Council

The Beacon Council, Miami-Dade County’s official economic development partnership, is a public-private organization celebrating its 30th anniversary. Since 1985, the nonprofit has assisted more than 980 businesses that have created more than 65,000 direct jobs and added more than $4 billion in new capital investments. The organization accomplishes this by marketing Miami-Dade as a world-class business location, growing local companies and shaping the local economy’s future. For more information, visit www.beaconcouncil.com

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