Artist's rendering: Clay Lacy Aviation at John Wayne Airport will provide recharging to Eviation’s Alice electric plane.

Plugging Into Electric Airplanes

August 15, 2023

Artist's rendering: Clay Lacy Aviation at John Wayne Airport will provide recharging to Eviation’s Alice electric plane.
 PHOTO CREDIT: COURTESY OF CLAY LACY AVIATION – Artist’s rendering: Clay Lacy Aviation at John Wayne Airport will provide recharging to Eviation’s Alice electric plane.

Energized by Edison

By Mary Ann Milbourn ENERGIZED by Edison Writer

Clay Lacy Aviation will break ground this summer on a new terminal and hangar facility at Orange County’s John Wayne Airport with an eye toward an electrified future. 

The state-of-art facility will be the first in the world to be certified to the ISI Envision Gold Standard for sustainable infrastructure. It will include all the traditional needs for the fixed-base operator to provide maintenance, fueling, charters, flight training, hangar space and tie-downs for private aircraft. 

But the company is also moving forward with plans to meet the future mobility needs of its customers. The facility will include infrastructure for 48 electric vehicles and the next generation of aviation — electric aircraft. 

This isn’t just a wild idea out of “The Jetsons.” Electric aircraft have been in development and testing for some time. The industry is expecting the first electric passenger aircraft to start being certified to fly as soon as next year.

Clay Lacy Aviation will break ground this summer on a new terminal and hangar facility at Orange County’s John Wayne Airport with an eye toward an electrified future. 

Artist's rendering: Gensler designed the new Clay Lacy Aviation facility that will be built at John Wayne Airport.
 PHOTO CREDIT: COURTESY OF CLAY LACY AVIATION – Artist’s rendering: Gensler designed the new Clay Lacy Aviation facility that will be built at John Wayne Airport.

The state-of-art facility will be the first in the world to be certified to the ISI Envision Gold Standard for sustainable infrastructure. It will include all the traditional needs for the fixed-base operator to provide maintenance, fueling, charters, flight training, hangar space and tie-downs for private aircraft. 

But the company is also moving forward with plans to meet the future mobility needs of its customers. The facility will include infrastructure for 48 electric vehicles and the next generation of aviation — electric aircraft. 

This isn’t just a wild idea out of “The Jetsons.” Electric aircraft have been in development and testing for some time. The industry is expecting the first electric passenger aircraft to start being certified to fly as soon as next year.

Clay Lacy Aviation will break ground this summer on a new terminal and hangar facility at Orange County’s John Wayne Airport with an eye toward an electrified future. 

Clay Lacy Aviation hopes to make John Wayne Airport a hub for electric aircraft service.
 PHOTO CREDIT: COURTESY OF CLAY LACY AVIATION – Clay Lacy Aviation hopes to make John Wayne Airport a hub for electric aircraft service.

The state-of-art facility will be the first in the world to be certified to the ISI Envision Gold Standard for sustainable infrastructure. It will include all the traditional needs for the fixed-base operator to provide maintenance, fueling, charters, flight training, hangar space and tie-downs for private aircraft. 

But the company is also moving forward with plans to meet the future mobility needs of its customers. The facility will include infrastructure for 48 electric vehicles and the next generation of aviation — electric aircraft. 

This isn’t just a wild idea out of “The Jetsons.” Electric aircraft have been in development and testing for some time. The industry is expecting the first electric passenger aircraft to start being certified to fly as soon as next year.