Page 4 - Volume 17 Number 12

2 • TWIN & TURBINEDECEMBER 2013editor’sbriefingTHE NECESSITY OF FBOsIn the U.S., we tend to take Fixed Base Operators for granted. When we pull into a strange town, we expect that there will be an easy-to-find place to park the airplane, a comfortable building where we can get out of the wind, fuel for the asking and security as a given. Whether it’s a municipal facility, a family-run business, or a big chain affiliation, we’ve likelygone through our flying career thinking an FBO of some kind will be there to take care of us.Consider what general aviation would be like if FBOs disappeared. On short final, we see weeds infesting the cracks in the runway. Beside the vacant ramp, an empty windsock frame and a neglected avgas sign are swinging in the wind. You hunt for a FOD-free parking spot on your own initiative; tiedown markings and ropes are long gone. You shut down and disembark to hunt the facilities, finding an unlocked empty office, or maybe just a vacant phone booth with a missing payphone. You hope there’s cell service.I’ve been in third-world places like this, and probably you have too. Makes you appreciate even worn couches and stale coffee; a marshalling line crew and smiling greeter are truly welcome sights when you get back to civilization. If you were raised right, you’ll silently vow to never again complain about them having only one courtesy car, forcing you to take a taxi to lunch while the boss is doing business. After the boondocks, even a small FBO is gratifying.Now, these are hard times in the aircraft service business. Cutter Aviation’s Will Cutter reported that his chain’s revenuesof $110 million in 2008 dropped by nearly one-half in the next year, and they had only built back to $90 million by 2012. Many smaller firms are going away or affiliating with major chains. Expansion to attract larger corporate aircraft is the survival technique for those with access to capital.Given the trend toward mega-malls in the FBO business (Signature is reportedly building a 29-acre facility at San Jose International), we may have come to expect free munchies, snoozing rooms and crew cars on demand. Not every FBO can provide the level of service you have at home, so if you have to rent transportation and pay a ramp fee, understand that nothing comes for free. The apron out front may belong to the city, but the FBO has a lease to pay. The light bill and upkeep has to be covered by income from services rendered, which explains why fuel is a couple of bucks higher than the you-pump price at home base. Sure, I shop around, and I won’t go back to where my finances were violated, but I also understand the realities of keeping a business afloat.It behooves us owner pilots to show appreciation for those FBOs who continue to welcome our sometimes-paltry business. Perhaps you’ve learned what it’s like to be treated as second-class traffic in a mere piston twin, and you remember the warm feeling of hearing “y’all come back” at operators who truly appreciate even 50-gallon fill-ups. Don’t take FBOs for granted; instead, take care of them. Our airplanes are useless if we don’t have a place to park after landing and access to fuel to get us back home.Private aviation is a wonderful way to get around. If you feel appreciated by an FBO, show your appreciation in return.LeRoy Cook, Editor