Blog Archives
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When It Comes to Airport/Tenant Relations ...
- Wednesday October 12, 2011… it is increasingly evident that many in the fixed base operator community are anxious to find a new common ground when it comes to leases and the roles FBOs and airports play. At least, that’s the message heard during discussions at the NBAA convention in Las Vegas. Or put another way, FBOs want a level playing field and some are concerned that taxpayer dollars may be giving some airports an advantage. On the subject of lease lengths TAC Air president Greg Arnold says, “The FBO industry is asking for best practices to be adopted.†One issue, being pursued by a coalition of primarily the major U.S. FBO chains and NATA, is a recognition that long-term leaseholds are critical for private investment. The coalition... -
Should be an Interesting NBAA This Year ...
- Wednesday October 5, 2011… as the business aviation segment heads to Las Vegas next week, one has to wonder how the industry is going to present itself. We’re still recovering from the devastation of 2008; still attempting to deflect the onslaughts from the man who accesses the No. 1 corporate aircraft in the world – Air Force One. And of course there’s the global economic crisis, fuel volatility, Washington politics, etc. Thing is, my sense is that this is going to be a good NBAA. A rebound of sorts. The sense here is that the industry wants to push on … push on beyond the malaise. NBAA is trying out a mini-static display at the convention center. I suspect it will be a hit. The big OEMs will be more prominent on the trade show... -
The DOGS Continue to Play a Key Role in Disaster Relief ...
- Wednesday September 28, 2011… as highlighted during a recent discussion at the AAAE National Airports Conference in Tucson. The two primary groups – the Southeast Airports Disaster Operations Group (SEADOG) and Western Airports Disaster Operations Group (WESTDOG) -- are an effort in airport-to-airport mutual assistance during natural disasters. The concept got its start during the turbulent hurricane season of 2004, when Patrick Graham, A.A.E., executive director of the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, reached out to Frank Miller, who is now at San Antonio International, but was then at Pensacola. At that time, Hurricane Charley was bearing down on the Florida community. As I wrote in a March 2008 cover story on Graham... -
Among the Highlights at the National Airports Conference in Tucson This Week ...
- Wednesday September 21, 2011… were insights from FAA’s No. 2, deputy associate administrator for airports Kate Lang, and Bob Montgomery, VP of properties for Southwest Airlines. Both are quite well known on this circuit – notably for their pragmatism and candor. Regarding this summer’s shutdown of FAA operations as a result of the ongoing power struggle in Washington, Lang relates, “That was really a blow to the organization.†It was a “failure of the system†that forced airport workers to stay home – legally they couldn’t report, she says. Then there were the mission-critical personnel who worked without pay. “This issue of not getting paid is a big deal,†says Lang. And she adds... -
While in Albuquerque Recently ...
- Wednesday September 14, 2011… I dropped in on the Double Eagle II airport, a reliever for Albuquerque International Airport. I had first visited the facility some 12 years ago, when as I recall there was one building and marginal general aviation activity. The airport is named for the Double Eagle II hot air balloon, which was the first to traverse the Atlantic from North America in 1978 and which is commemorated at the local hot air balloon museum. Since that time, the city has built an impressive terminal facility that houses airport administration and future growth. It was built at a time when the economy was roaring and Eclipse, based at ABQ, was planning on manufacturing the Eclipse 500 aircraft, the phenom of the very light jet movement. The facility... -
It Was a Warm August Evening Full of Blue Skies ...
- Wednesday September 7, 2011… and I was pilot in command of a Cessna 172 flying out of Solberg Airport in Readington, NJ, a short flight from New York City. Flying toward the east, with the setting sun behind us reflecting off the twin towers of the World Trade Center, it was majestic. It was vivid then. It became so much moreso later on. It was a warm September morning in Montreal … … headed to the convention center for the opening of the Airports Council International-North America’s annual meeting. Watching CNN in the hotel as I get dressed; a plane crashes into the tower in NYC. As I watch a second airplane crash into the second tower, I shout at the TV: “The bastards have finally done it.†Turns out, they had. At the... -
Roger Dow, CEO of the U.S. Travel Association ...
- Wednesday August 31, 2011… says the U.S. travel and tourism industry currently has an economic impact of some $700 million annually, which is down some ten percent since 2009. He blames the policymakers in Washington for the decrease. He says that from 2000 through 2010 long-haul international travel jumped some 40 percent globally – the U.S. market saw a 1.7 percent increase over that period. “We call it the lost decade,†he says. Dow, speaking at the annual International Aviation Forecast Summit hosted by The Boyd Group in Albuquerque Tuesday, adds that something else the good folks in D.C. don’t seem to understand is that “it’s also public diplomacy†when people visit the U.S. They tend to leave with a better... -
At 73, Charlie Priester Keeps Charging Ahead ...
- Wednesday August 17, 2011Charlie Priester at his company’s new state-of-the-art control center. … hey, it’s a global market so we’re going global, says Priester. Such is the philosophy of a man who knows something about running an airport, an FBO, and an international charter company. The Priester family sold the Pal-Waukee Airport some ten miles north of O’Hare International to the cities of Prospect Heights and Wheeling in 1986. Charlie subsequently sold his FBO to Signature Flight Support, with whom he is a subtenant today. At committee meetings for the National Air Transportation Association in D.C. in May, Charlie and I were at a reception talking with a few other folks. Charlie starts glowing about a new... -
In the Latest Understatement To Come from Capitol Hill ...
- Wednesday August 10, 2011… Senator Harry Reid (D-NV), Senator John Rockefeller (D-WV), and four other Democrats plead in a letter to U.S. House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) for him to appoint conferees to find a long-term solution to FAA/system funding, pointing out that “action on a final FAA bill is long overdue.†In fact, four and a half years overdue. The current reauthorization extension expires September 16, a date which seems odd considering that the new federal fiscal year begins October 1. In the letter the Senators state, “Public statements from you and Chairman John Mica say that you are 'willing to use every tool at your disposal' to negotiate a final FAA bill, yet one tool you have so far been unwilling to use is the normal... -
Truly a Fascinating Week in Washington ...
- Wednesday August 3, 2011… as the business aviation sector dodges a tax bullet while FAA and airport infrastructure funding remain in limbo. Aviation groups had feared that, fueled by recent comments by President Obama, new user fees for the industry would surface during the debt ceiling debate on Capitol Hill. Fortunately, that didn’t happen. Relates National Business Aviation Association president/CEO Ed Bolen, “As everyone knows, the recent negotiations over the debt ceiling have included rhetoric and policy proposals that have alarmed the business aviation community. Remarks denigrating companies that rely on business aviation have been used to revive proposals for onerous user fees and impromptu changes to aircraft tax...
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