International Flights Arriving From Nearly All Countries Now Permitted at the Grant County International Airport (KMWH).
Columbia Pacific Aviation, Inc. (CPA) has earned authorization to handle regulated garbage from international flights. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) authorized CPA to remove, handle, and transport regulated garbage from international flights arriving at the Grant County International Airport (KMWH). With CPA’s new authorization, the KMWH airport, located in Moses Lake, Washington, is able to accept flights originating from nearly any country in the world, offering a cost- and time-sensitive alternative method to dispose of their regulated garbage.
“For nearly ten years, the Grant County International Airport was limited to international flights arriving from Canada. With CPA’s new regulated garbage authorization, the airport becomes an appealing tech-stop option to the operators of international flights.”
Jeff Akridge, President of Columbia Pacific Aviation, Inc.
Plants and animals in the United States are at risk from foreign pests that may be present in foreign garbage. The U.S. CBP and the USDA work together to ensure these threats are eliminated through specific handling and destruction procedures. Special authorization to handle foreign garbage is required to ensure the health of the U.S. agricultural industry.
As a result of handling regulated garbage from international flights, CPA anticipates an increase in international air traffic, which will increase servicing aircraft, refueling, and other support activities at the airport. Attracting international air traffic will ultimately increase the services available and diversify the types of flights handled at the airport.
Columbia Pacific Aviation, Inc., based at the Grant County International Airport since its establishment in 1993, provides ground and flight services in Central Washington. CPA provides flight test support, ground handling, refueling, pilot services, flight training, and aircraft rental and management services.