Before there were FBOs, there were only barnstorming, field- hopping, post-World War I pilots with no fixed base of operations. The founders of the first FBO were pilots, but they were also businesspeople who recognized the need for stable, professional flight and ground services for air customers from a permanent base of operations.
Today, FBOs provide the ground services and support required by general aviation and, at many locations, for major air-lines and military units, according to the National Air Transportation Association (NATA), the trade group for FBOs, commuter airlines, and air taxis. While there may not be an aviation manager, there is most certainly an FBO at virtually all airports accepting transient aircraft. The FBO provides products and services such as aviation fuels and oils, aircraft repair and maintenance, aircraft sales and rental, flight instruction, air taxi or commuter airline service, hangars and tie-downs for aircraft, pilot and passenger lounges, avionics service, aircraft parts, and pilot supplies. Be-cause FBOs are directly responsible for maintaining, servicing, and fueling aircraft and, in some instances, maintaining runways and taxi way, they have a critical responsibility for aviation safety.
Sometimes, a single full-service FBO will provide all of these services. Some 80 percent of all FBOs maintain an air taxi service, making this type of company an integral part of the air transportation system.
Most FBOs are relatively small companies. A medium-sized operator might have 50 people and annual sales of $5 million from all sources; they might support 40 based aircraft.
NATA estimates that there are about 4,000 FBOs, employing 45,000 people. Mean salaries, nationwide, for managers/ super-visors, according to NATA are:
Avionics Manager, $34,800 Building Maintenance Manager, $24,000 Chief Flight Instructor, $25,200 Chief Pilot, $33,600 Comptroller, $42,000 General Manager, $45,600 Flight Operations Manager, $40,200 Line Service Manager, $26,400 Line Service Supervisor, $22,800 Maintenance Manager, $38,400 Maintenance Supervisor, $32,400 Marketing Manager, $37,200 Parts Manager, $27,600 Parts Supervisor, $27,600 Hourly wage earners include:
Avionics Specialist, $12.67 Dispatcher, $8.50 Inspector, $15.00
Line Personnel (who fuel/direct planes), $7.00
Mechanic with A&P, $11.25
Mechanic without A&P, $8.60
Deregulation has vastly increased business for FBOs, particularly among the new carriers, which cannot afford to have their own service and maintenance facilities. Most airlines today, how-ever, are also interested in contracting out services, particularly when they go into a new location. Even at large facilities, aircraft refueling and deicing are done on a contractual basis by the airline and the FBO. They (the airlines) save the capital investment in equipment and personnel and if they decide to leave, they can pull out without transferring investment," said Alan J. Steam, president of Hudson General, a $35-million FBO based in Great Neck, NY.
A few FBOs actually operate the airport. Lockheed operates three airports (Columbus, OH, Hollywood-Burbank, and Republic Airport, NY).
Among the largest FBO companies are Page Avjet, Rochester, NY; Butler Aviation, Montvale, NJ; AMR Combs, Denver; Van Dusen Airport Services, Minneapolis; and Hudson General.
Butler Aviation International, a subsidiary of Butler Aviation, for example, employs 3,000 people at 31 airports spanning North America, plus Bermuda and Hawaii. In addition to providing fueling, ground support and maintenance services, Butler Aviation also supplies security, warehousing, disabled passenger transportation, and baggage system maintenance. It even publishes its own corporate in-flight magazine.
NATA, with about 1,900 members, has taken a more active role in government affairs by representing industry positions with the FAA, Environmental Protection Agency, and IRS, among others. One benefit of working at a NATA member business is the associations interline program, which provides reduced-rate travel through agreements with various airlines, Caesar Hotels, Pacific Interline Tours, and others. Another benefit is its 401K program for member employees.
Role of the Federal Government
Another active partner in the aviation system is the federal government. It acts as both the manager of the airspace and the monitor of the control system to ensure the public's safety.
Some 45,000 people are employed by the Federal Aviation Administration within the Department of Transportation; almost half are engaged in air traffic control. They staff some 430 airport control towers, 23 air route traffic control centers, and about 200 flight service stations.
About 9,000 technicians and engineers install and maintain the various components of the system, such as radar, communications sites, and ground navigation aids. For example, the system includes more than 275 long-range and terminal radar systems, more than 800 instrument landing systems, and about 950 very high frequency omnidirectional radio ranges. The FAA also operates its own fleet of specially equipped aircraft to check the accuracy of this equipment from the air.
The FAA is in the midst of a capital investment program to continuously overhaul the National Airspace System by installing state of the art technology that will keep a cap on additional employment while enabling the system to double in capacity. Much of the research and development (R&D) for the National Airspace System Plan came from the FAA's own Systems Research and Development Service and the FAA's Technical Center in Atlantic City, NJ. Many engineering and development (E&D) projects are also done in-house at the Technical Center at Atlantic City, as well as at the Transportation Systems Center at Cambridge, MA. At the Technical Center in Atlantic City, for example, engineers are looking into safety issues by studying ways to improve the crashworthiness and fire safety of aircraft. Aeromedical research is done at the FAA's Civil Aeromedical Institute at Oklahoma City.
A key responsibility for the FAA is aircraft and pilot/technician certification. There are more than 200,000 civil aircraft in the United States, and the FAA requires that each be certified airworthy. FAA aeronautical safety inspectors work along with factory engineers. The FAA has a team of specialists to approve airline maintenance programs. It also licenses repair stations and conducts regular inspections.
The FAA employs 3,400 flight standards (safety) inspectors. Starting salaries are $22,894, $27,700, and $33,200, depending on civil service grade.
Air carrier airworthiness, general aviation airworthiness, and avionics airworthiness inspectors have several functions. They evaluate mechanics and repair facilities for initial and continuing certification, evaluate mechanic training programs, inspect aircraft and related equipment for airworthiness, and evaluate the maintenance programs of air carriers and similar commercial operators.
Manufacturing inspectors inspect prototypes of modified aircraft, aircraft parts, and avionics equipment for conformity with design specifications and safety standards. They assume FAA certificate responsibility for manufacturing facilities, determine the airworthiness of newly produced aircraft, and issue certificates for all civil aircraft including modified, import, export, military surplus, and amateur-built aircraft.
Applicants for inspectors' jobs must have three years of general experience in aviation that has provided familiarity with air-craft operation or in the aviation industry related to the specialization (advanced education in related fields such as aeronautical engineering or air transportation can be substituted for general experience). In addition, two or three years of specialized experience that has provided a broad knowledge of the aviation industry, aviation safety, and the federal laws, regulations, and policies regulating aviation are also required.
The FAA employs more than 17,000 air traffic controllers and is continually hiring new controllers. The FAA normally recruits controllers twice a year, in April and in October. Controllers work at any one of three categories of air traffic control facilities: (1) en route traffic control centers (which control aircraft operating under instrument flight rules between airport terminal areas) (2) airport control towers (which handle flights in the terminal areas) and (3) flight service stations (which provide pilots with a range of weather and flight services).
Much attention has been focused on the high stress of the air traffic controller's job. In fact, most of the time work is very tedious and routine. The problem is that at any moment you can be looking down on the screen at tiny blinking lights representing aircraft and see a catastrophe about to happen.
Applicants for controllers' jobs must pass a written examination and meet other job qualifications (generally, candidates must not be over 30 years old) in order to be added, according to individual rankings, to the list of eligible persons. Those chosen are sent to the FAA Academy at Oklahoma City for an initial training course of up to 15 weeks before they move on to a facility for additional on-the-job training. Starting salary is $21,000, but experienced controllers are well paid; in a large metropolitan facility such as New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles, experienced controllers can earn as much as $90,000.
The FAA is also responsible for rulemaking to ensure a safe system. Thus, it employs many attorneys on staff.
Job openings at the FAA are advertised in the Federal Regis-ter. They are also listed by the Office of Personnel Management, which has offices in Washington D.C. and most large cities.
