Elon Musk is reportedly planning to open a private airport near Austin, Texas. The exact location of Musk’s airport has not been revealed, but it is said to be located near Bastrop. Let’s take a look at what the entrepreneur has in store.
Elon Musk plans to open a private airport for executives
Elon Musk is making his presence known once again, reporting plans to build a brand new private airport in Austin. More specifically, the airport would be located near Bastrop. The main reason why Elon Musk plans to open a private airport in this location is to allow himself and his managers to travel by private jet. The airport would be strategically located, considering that many of Musk’s companies, including Tesla’s headquarters, SpaceX , and The Boring Company , are within its potential reach.
Elon Musk and his companies own a huge tract of land in the second largest state in the US. The entrepreneur’s largest area is in central Texas, along the Colorado River. A particularly key area for Musk would be Giga Texas in southeastern Travis County, which covers 2,500 acres (10 square kilometers). The significance of this land is due to the fact that in December 2021, Musk moved Tesla’s headquarters there from Silicon Valley in California. What’s more, The Boring Company’s headquarters have also been moved to Texas, three miles from Austin Executive Airport , which serves general aviation as an alternative to Austin-Bergstrom Airport .
Switching to a better model
There is no exact information yet about the specifics of Musk’s airport. However, it can be assumed that the airport will have similar features to Austin Executive Airport. This airport is characterized by a runway of 1.8 km and an area of 12,077 square meters of shared hangar space. Musk regularly flies to Austin Executive on a Gulfstream G650 built in 2015 , but he has reportedly planned an upgrade to the G700, which has a base price of an average of $78 million. Delivery of the aircraft is expected in early 2023. What may have prompted Musk to choose this private jet is the fact that it reportedly offers the most spacious cabin on the private jet market, with 19 seats and two bathrooms. The aircraft has a flight range of 13,890 km, which is enough to fly non-stop from Austin to Hong Kong. Many may wonder if Musk’s new private jet will be as famous as his current one, which has its own automated Twitter account, elonjet, that tracks and reports the movements of Musk’s personal plane.
However, no exact timeline has been shared regarding the start of construction. Nevertheless, building an airport is not an easy feat. Musk will have to submit an application and wait for approval from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) , as well as confirmation that the airport plan complies with environmental standards set by the FAA. Furthermore, no information is currently available regarding the exact location of the new airport.
