Jay Honeck
Touchdown! Greaser!
I just returned home from my Airport Commission's monthly meeting, and what a downer. Our FBO announced that -- for the first time in years -- they've had a very down quarter. In fact, the owner estimates that his business is off a whopping 50% from this time last year!
I know flying is way down -- Mary and I rarely see other planes at airports when we fly anymore (our "weekend" is Wed/Thu, so we fly during the "dead times"), and our fly-in business at our aviation theme-suite hotel has dropped way off -- but to hear it quantified like that is still like getting hit with a bucket of ice water. How long can our aviation infrastructure take that kind of stress?
The FBO owner says that for his charter business to be profitable, his fuel prices should be 20 - 30% of his expenses. This last quarter, they jumped to over 50% of his expenses, and he has been unable to pass such a huge increase along in the way of higher prices. And his flight instruction hours have plummeted, too, as the higher costs have driven away many students.
Talk about a pinch! Are you guys seeing the same thing at your airports?
Let's hope the OPEC meeting on fuel output (announced today) will help lower these skyrocketing gas prices.
I know flying is way down -- Mary and I rarely see other planes at airports when we fly anymore (our "weekend" is Wed/Thu, so we fly during the "dead times"), and our fly-in business at our aviation theme-suite hotel has dropped way off -- but to hear it quantified like that is still like getting hit with a bucket of ice water. How long can our aviation infrastructure take that kind of stress?
The FBO owner says that for his charter business to be profitable, his fuel prices should be 20 - 30% of his expenses. This last quarter, they jumped to over 50% of his expenses, and he has been unable to pass such a huge increase along in the way of higher prices. And his flight instruction hours have plummeted, too, as the higher costs have driven away many students.
Talk about a pinch! Are you guys seeing the same thing at your airports?
Let's hope the OPEC meeting on fuel output (announced today) will help lower these skyrocketing gas prices.