Jackson Hole Airport in Wyoming has said it may buy the airport’s single FBO, Jackson Hole Aviation, to circumvent FAA guidelines that stipulate the airport must soon allow a second FBO to operate at the airport.
Under FAA guidelines, when the airport’s new fuel facility opens in mid-2018, the airport will be required to accommodate a second FBO. It has therefore directed staff to develop a Request for Proposals (RFP) for that second FBO.
However, the airport’s current FBO, Jackson Hole Aviation, has approached the airport’s executive director and suggested that the inefficiencies associated with two FBOs operating on the same ramp could be avoided if the board purchased and operated a single FBO on the airport.
Although a second FBO must be accommodated under the FAA’s general rule, the law provides an exception in situations where the airport operator itself chooses to exclusively own and operate the FBO. This has been done at several airports in the USA.
The board’s executive director, attorney and general aviation committee have begun to investigate and study such a purchase. This review is ongoing, and the general aviation committee is not yet prepared to make a recommendation to the board.
At a recent meeting, the airport’s management board said it believed purchasing the FBO might enable better efficiency and safety of operations on the general aviation ramp and at the fuel facility, and avoid the cost of constructing duplicate FBO facilities.
