There was more tangible evidence this week of the vitality of the Benedum Airport and the businesses located there. The airport authority announced Tuesday that a new hangar is being built for Pratt & Whitney to accommodate larger planes.

Wesex Corp. will be building a $1.8 million hangar for the authority, which will, in turn, lease it to Pratt & Whitney.

The company's existing facility is not big enough to handle repairs of some larger planes. The new hangar will permit workers to replace the engines with rebuilt ones and put the craft back into service while the original engines are being serviced.

The turnaround time will be about a day and a half. That should be a big selling point for Pratt & Whitney.

Certainly the operation of companies like Pratt & Whitney at the airport and the extension of the runway have made for a solid economic foundation here in Harrison County. This latest project only helps to enhance an already bright future.