Aviation & Aerospace
Bartow Executive Airport offers the advantages of metro airports without the heavy traffic. Maintaining a runway longer than 4k feet, BEA also has a flying school for flight training.
Bartow Executive Airport’s Industrial Park
Access to the facilities is varied and is a true multi-modal hub as the Bartow Executive Airport’s industrial park contains four-lane highway frontage, three active runways, and a railroad spur. The existing inter-modal area consists of approximately 40 acres; approximately 8000 linear feet of rail spurs and has approximately 380,000 square feet of existing warehouse/distribution/shed type facilities. The Airport Master Plan calls for the Inter-modal Center area to be expanded to approximately 70 acres. A 10 to 20-year Long Term Inter-modal Concept was prepared that illustrates the potential development of this Airports Inter-modal Center. It includes rail spur realignments, additional rail spurs and expanded rail spurs. The land adjacent to the rail spurs could facilitate approximately 260,000 square feet of additional warehouse distribution facilities.
The airport offers transportation and distribution opportunities as well as manufacturing sites and manages over 60 buildings, with a variety of tenants including cold storage, water treatment facility, trucking, as well as county and state offices.
According to the latest Florida Department of Transportation Economic Impact study of the Bartow Executive Airport and Industrial Park, the airport and industrial park produced nearly 111.9 million dollars in goods and services in 2018.
Local Avionics and Education Programs
Locally, there are three international airports within 60 miles of Bartow; 3 other regional airports within Polk County; 2 space ports in Florida; and 12 flight academies within the state of Florida.
Polk County’s expertise in aviation and aerospace spans nearly 5,300 employees at an average wage of $57,000 including 12 flight schools in the region.
Polk State College: Polk State offers an A.S. in Professional Pilot Science, A.S. in Aerospace Administration and a B.S. in Aerospace Sciences. Students can earn additional certifications as Certified Flight Instructors, Certified Instrument Flight Instructors and/or Certified Multi-Engine Flight Instructors.
Southeastern University: Southeastern University offers affordable and accessible degrees that prepare professional pilots. A student who begins this program with zero flight hours will earn their Commercial Pilot Certificate with Instrument and Multi-Engine Rating, Flight Instructor Certificate, and AAS degree in Professional Pilot
Traviss Technical College: Offering both high school and adult vocational training, Traviss has programs in Avionics and Airframe Mechanics. Students can earn an FAA certification as Aviation Maintenance Technicians.