Vertical Integration

On GSE maintenance, says Dugan, “Airline ground handling is an important part of our future and we cross-train people that work in other areas. A flight instructor can also be trained in ground handling for extra money and flight benefits.

“Generally we take care of our own equipment; people are not hired to be inside or outside — we hire to cross train.”

Moving ahead

In Grand Island airline ground handling adds more than 500,000 gallons in fuel a year, but with airline fuel, the company doesn’t charge anywhere near the margin it does on private jets, relates Dugan. “It’s an everyday thing, you’ve got to be cooperative with the airline and you’ve got to make it so the airline wants to buy fuel,” he adds.

“We do this on a per-turn basis; I don’t charge them any margin. They pay for the fuel, they pay me to pull the truck up and pump the fuel, and what I charge for that varies on the size of the airplane.

“I always looked at this as: I have to go to the airline to get more of this business.

“But I’ve now realized that the cities are who I should be talking to. It’s the cities that have the vested interest in this airline service, and we have a solution. We will do it, we want to do it, and we like to do it.”