Kalitta Expanding Oscoda Air Maintenance Center

YPSILANTI -- Kalitta Air said Wednesday it would add 12,000 square feet and 12 more aircraft engine repair bays to its Kalitta Maintenance Engine Center in Oscoda.

Eric Couvreur, director of maintenance at Kalitta Air, said the expansion to the 32,000-square-foot center, opened last year, would allow Kalitta to bid on government contracts.

"The goal is to be able to hire, but the number is undetermined at this point," Couvreur said. "We hope to be able to go after government business with the KC-10 airborne refueling planes, engine maintenance and airframe maintenance. If we win a major contract we could be talking adding a couple of hundred people."

The center is designed to maintain General Electric CF6-50 and CF6-80 turbine engines. It also offers a wide range of engine and component repairs, restorations, overhauls on several engine types as well as the onsite ability to meet all GE test cell requirements.