Aug. 26--Cutter Aviation is planning a $1.75 million expansion and remodel of its aircraft fueling and service station at the Albuquerque International Sunport.
The company will build a new $1.5 million hangar capable of handling large corporate jets. It also will invest $250,000 to modernize its terminal building for general aviation customers.
"We'll start remodeling the whole front area before the end of the year to modernize it and give it a more contemporary Southwest feel," said Cutter President Will Cutter. "We plan to open the doors on our new, large corporate hangar in about two years."
The changes are part of companywide upgrades underway at many of the eight airport hubs that Cutter now operates in five southwestern states. That includes a new service location that the company opened on July 15 at Van Nuys Airport in southern California.
Cutter is an 85-year-old, family-run firm that launched in Albuquerque. It provides aircraft fueling, repair and maintenance services for general aviation aircraft. It also manages charter services and sells new and used Piper, Socata and Honda aircraft.
It began in 1928 as Cutter Flying Service Inc. two years after Congress approved the Air Commerce Act, which cleared the way for regulated general aviation businesses to start up around the country.
Founder William P. Cutter created the business to provide needed air charters to reach ranches, towns and businesses scattered across New Mexico, Arizona and Texas.
Cutter also offered aircraft sales, line and fuel services to pilots as a Phillips 66 Aviation fuel dealer beginning in 1938, and aircraft maintenance to support the growing number of aircraft.
During World War II, Cutter Flying Service became a pilot-training business for the U.S. armed services from 1941 to 1945. In 1947, Cutter began a long-standing association with the Beechcraft Aircraft Corp. and became a consistently successful dealer of Beechcraft Aircraft for more than 62 years.
The company bills itself as the world's oldest family-owned and operated fixed-base operator chain. But, like most aviation firms, it suffered a lot in the recession.
Revenue had reached a record $110 million in 2008. But it plummeted to just $65 million in 2009, forcing Cutter to reduce its workforce from 340 to 250 employees.
"The recession was devastating for aviation," Cutter said. "But it's been coming back up. We did a little more than $90 million in revenue in 2012, and we expect to be back at $100 million this year."
The company's workforce has climbed back to about 300, with 60 based in Albuquerque.
With the industry rebounding, the company is beefing up facilities. That includes a broad remodel of its hub in Phoenix, a new hangar at its El Paso station and a new terminal in Colorado Springs.
The new Albuquerque hangar will be the first at the Sunport capable of managing large corporate jets with tails as high as 26 feet, said Lowell Whitten, vice present and general manager for Albuquerque operations.
"More and more people are flying on corporate jets than in the past, and larger crafts are being used to accommodate them. But right now there's no place to house aircraft that large at the Sunport," Whitten said. "With a $40 million-plus aircraft, operators and owners don't want to just park it outside."
The company operates five 14,400-square-foot hangars at the Sunport. The new one will be 20,000 square feet.
Copyright 2013 - Albuquerque Journal, N.M.
