Federal funding, as well as industry and private commitments will establish a test bed for aerospace composite materials in the Pacific Northwest.

The leaders of Spokane's American Aerospace Materials Manufacturing Center Tech Hub have selected a 386,000-square-foot facility as its HQ. (ATC

The U.S. Department of Commerce on Tuesday awarded a $48 million grant to establish an aerospace manufacturing hub in Airway Heights that promises to make the Inland Northwest a national center for composite materials used in next-generation aircraft.

The hub will develop and manufacture lighter, more efficient materials for planes and other aerospace technology and then supply those materials to manufacturers.

Private-sector heavyweights including Boeing and Blue Origin backed the creation of the tech hub in late 2023.

Boeing, then headquartered in Seattle, received political pressure, led by U.S. Rep Tom Foley, D-Spokane, to spread some of its aircraft manufacturing operations to the Lilac City. In 1989, Foley rose to the highest position in the U.S. House of Representatives when he was elected speaker of the House.

A significant economic development is on the horizon for Spokane, as U.S. Senators Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray announced a $48 million grant for the American Aerospace