Avflight opens new private aviation facility at Cherry Capital Airport
Avflight opened a new FBO Tuesday as Cherry Capital Airport handled a record 935,816 passengers in 2025 and pushed ahead with expansion plans.
Avflight opened a new fixed-base operator facility at Cherry Capital Airport on Tuesday, adding a larger private-aviation terminal and service hub in Traverse City. The new space gives pilots, passengers and crews a private-aviation terminal with pilot lounges, sleep rooms and a kitchenette among the amenities on display.
Joe Meszaros, Avflight’s senior vice president of operations, said the company’s work centers on connectivity and the movement of people, businesses and opportunities in the community. Avflight has operated in Grand Traverse County for 12 years and wants to keep supporting northern Michigan while drawing in new visitors.
Cherry Capital Airport approved the land-use application for the new FBO through its building-and-grounds process in April 2025. The filing called for a new fixed-base operator terminal of about 5,500 square feet, with an outdoor patio space, and listed a proposed construction start date of May 19, 2025 and completion date of April 20, 2026. Airport materials place the building in the general-aviation corridor off Airport Access Road south of Parsons Road, where Avflight and other aviation businesses cluster around the airport.
Cherry Capital Airport served 935,816 passengers in 2025, a 19% increase over its previous record of 787,114, and the year was the busiest in airport history. Seven airlines offered 20 nonstop destinations last year, while its larger Gates to the Future terminal expansion is expected to add new gates and other passenger-focused upgrades.
A Michigan legislative spending request said the existing Cherry Capital Airport terminal was designed for 350,000 passengers a year, while TVC handled about 950,000 passengers in 2025. A 2017 Michigan Department of Transportation study estimated nearly $1 billion in annual economic impact, along with 1,377 on-site jobs and 3,169 off-site jobs.
Avflight offers aircraft ground handling, parking, hangars, passenger terminal and lounge space, flight training, aerial tours, maintenance and aircraft modifications.
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