Yakima City Manager Bob Harrison announced today that Robert Hodgman has been selected to fill the position of Yakima Air Terminal director. His first day on the job will be March 16th.
“Rob brings to the City a wealth of experience in a wide range of aviation disciplines,” said Harrison. “Rob honed his leadership and management skills during a distinguished military career and has continued to expand his aviation expertise,” said Harrison. “That depth and breadth of knowledge will serve the City of Yakima and the Yakima Air Terminal well.”
“I’m looking forward to applying my experience to the Yakima Air Terminal,” said Hodgman. “The Yakima Air Terminal is an important part of the Yakima area economy and has so much potential to be an even larger factor.”
Hodgman graduated from Pacific Lutheran University in 1989 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He joined the U.S. Army that same year and had multiple aviation assignments. In 1997, he became a member of the Washington Army National Guard, again fulfilling multiple aviation assignments.
In 2003, Hodgman graduated from Saint Martin’s University with a master’s degree in business administration and became the financial resource and budget manager for the Washington Army National Guard. Two years later, he became the Guard’s deputy construction and facilities management officer. Then, from 2011 to 2012, Hodgman served as the Washington Air National Guard’s contracting officer representative/project manager.
In 2012, Hodgman joined the Washington State Department of Transportation – Aviation staff as the State Capital Improvement Program manager. Later that year, he moved into his most recent WSDOT – Aviation role, aviation senior planner.
Hodgman has been active in aviation-related organizations serving in a variety of leadership positions for groups including the Washington Airport Management Association, the Washington State Community Airport Association, the National Association of State Aviation Officials, the Central Washington University Aviation Advisory Board, the WSDOT Freight Working Group, the Washington Pilots Association and several others.
The most recent Yakima Air Terminal director was Rob Peterson, who resigned in November 2021 for a job in North Carolina. Jaime Vera, the current airport operations and maintenance manager for the Yakima Air Terminal/McAllister Field, temporarily filled the director role until January of this year when Bob Stewart, a former Yakima fire chief, stepped in as interim Yakima Air Terminal director.
