(SMYRNA, TN)   The Smyrna/Rutherford County Airport Authority and the engineering firm Thomas and Hutton recently won the ACEC (American Council of Engineering Companies) -TN Engineering Excellence Award in the Large Transportation Category for the construction of a large aircraft maintenance hangar at Smyrna Airport.

The hangar is 30,892 square feet and is large enough to accommodate a Boeing 737-800 fully enclosed inside the hangar.

Contour Airlines, whose world headquarters are located at Smyrna Airport, utilizes the hangar for maintenance on their entire fleet of aircraft with over eighty-five employees based at Smyrna.

Smyrna Airport Executive Director John Black stated “ The addition of this state-of-the-art hangar is part of the ongoing master plan to increase aircraft services while attracting high quality jobs to Rutherford County. Working with Thomas and Hutton on this project from design through construction was a great team effort”.

Smyrna Airport is the busiest general aviation airport in the State of Tennessee with an average of 125,000 operations per year. It is home to over 45 businesses and an annual economic impact of $232 million per year. The airport is a tremendous economic engine for the community.

Chairman Mike Woods noted, “The Smyrna/Rutherford County Airport Authority is proud of this award and proud to be an integral part of the economy while serving the aviation community."