Mission Statement

The mission of the Campbell County Airport Board is to provide a safe and secure environment for the commercial and general aviation community by providing: services, professional staff, coordination and cooperation with the Campbell County Board of Commissioners, the Wyoming State Aeronautics Division and the Federal Aviation Administration.

Airport Information

The Gillette-Campbell County Airport is located in Northeastern Wyoming in a major energy producing part of the country known as the Powder River Basin. Gillette is at the hub of this basin, and the airport serves the commercial service and general aviation needs for a large portion of this corner of the state.

The Gillette-area has experienced significant growth over the past two decades. This growth is primarily due to the expansion of raw coal and coal-bed methane extraction. This is a trend, which according to the U.S. Department of Energy (D.O.E.), should continue for at least the next 25 years as technological improvements at coal-fired power plants allow near-zero emissions outputs. With these improvements to air quality and continuation of current national energy policy, coal-fired power generation is planned to exceed all other sources will into the future.

With approximately 32% of all bituminous coal in the U.S. coming from Campbell County mines, the projected growth in coal extraction required to fuel the new and existing power plants will result in consistent and steady growth to the region. Further, the D.O.E. projects that the Powder River Basin coal mines will have a growing market share of all U.S. coal throughout their forecast period through 2030. In

In order to serve the broadening business and population demands that will arise from this forecast growth in coal-related operations, the airport must have a current plan for phased development as additional facilities are needed. The airport can expect to see an increase in commercial service enplanements in addition to general aviation expansion in the form of corporate jet activity as the population grows. Additionally, general aviation activity from pleasure flights and small aircraft used for business and travel purposes will likely expand and the population and economy continue to develop.

Although coal mining is projected to continue to increase into the future, economies based on energy and mineral extraction have always been at the mercy of market forces. These effects were very apparent in Gillette during the early-1980s, when an oil boom and subsequent bust occurred in Gillette. This bust had a very dramatic effect on the social fabric and infrastructure in the city. However, since the majority of the nation’s coal production is from the area and there are few large scale alternative energy options, according to the D.O.E., the economic benefits from coal extraction should remain stable over the next few decades. This forecasted stability should minimize the potential for another dramatic burst period.

Due to the proximity of the coal sources, the construction of power plants in the region to connect to the national power grid has also increased. The construction and subsequent employment at these facilities will, like natural resource extraction, add skilled workers to the county and benefit the economic welfare of the region.

Currently, the airport is in very good condition and, is able to meet the existing demand from the aircraft operations. The airport operations were at their peak in the early 1980s during the oild boom period, with close to 60,000 operations in 1981. Operations sharply fell after the bust, and have stabilized at around 17,000 operations per year.

For current airfield information, please reference this AirNav website: http://www.airnav.com/airport/KGCC.

For current information on fuel prices and FBO services, call Flightline Inc. at 307.686.7000 or visit this AirNav website, http://www.airnav.com/airport/KGCC/FLIGHTLINE

For information regarding hangar rental space contact the airport administration office at 307.686.1042 or visit our general aviation page.