Crappy FBO's

[Propnose]

My vote goes to Executive Air(if I remember the name correctly) in RIC. I used to go there when I hauled checks, and the place is stuck in the 70's! The whole place smells like smoke, it's dirty and the crew car was horrible. Thankfully the company I am with now doesn't go there - we use Richmond Jet - which is not too bad.

 

[T-DOGGIN]

Same owners of both FBO's on RIC

 

[Nolife]

All these responses and no one metioned Transit Fried Chicken in MSY. I worked there for a few yrs a while back and I have to admit I was the lazy line guy sometimes. I'd rather puff a smoke and watch you load your bags. Fred Sanford vintage fuel trucks that more than one jet driver made me give him a sample from to show there actually was more jet A than water in it. FBO was a pre-fab house with a sagging floor and a 30 year old paint job. Average individual IQ of the personel correlated to their shoe size (I have big feet). But we had cheap gas... really cheap.

So now I don't expect too much from line service and I'm not usually dissapointed.

 

[murfdawg998]

murfdawg,

I used to work at Landmark IAD back in the Piedmont Hawthorne days. Way way way back in the day (like prior to 9/11/01) Signature DCA handled a vast majority of the traffic headed to Capitol Hill.

Then, overnight, DCA closed to GA traffic, but we all know that. However, Landmark's ramp didn't increase in size overnight, and getting the 19R runup block from the airport authority was the only thing we could do. We also utilize the "Cargo 6" area by FedEX for larger aircraft, and occasionally, we used a ramp next to the "G" airline gates -- by runway 30. So, your hike could be worse.

Landmark handles arrivals and departures all day, rather continuously. Their problem is that they have only about fifteen spots (the first three rows) that are rather useful for parking arriving aircraft. You can't park an arriving aircraft on the runup block when it is full, nor can you park it in the last row where we tail airplanes up to the ditch.

The place is a nuthouse at 1700. You've got guys coming in on quick turns, and you've got everybody and their brother who was there for the day waiting to pick the boss up and get out of there. Those "prime" parking spots can't be help up for more than about an hour each. When you guys say "get me on the line at four" you're sitting there at five, six, and sometimes still seven. If we let everybody do that, we'd have no place for an arriving aircraft on a quick turn.

I know the runup block arrangement sucks. We're paying guys to tow airplanes all day long, and we're paying guys to drive the courtesy van. If we could cut down on our labor costs, I'm sure management would do it in a heartbeat. You're stuck out there not because the ramp guys are lazy (FWIW, they have a very hands-on manager who works outside in the afternoon) but because we have about 70 departable spots, and about 15 arrival slots. Any good departure spot is also an arrival spot.

I know you guys won't stop compalining about it, because it sucks. But, the truth is, it's a logistical necessity with the ramp space that they have.

well spoken...and FWIW I am not one of those pilots who requests to be online 3 hrs. before a "rolling" departure. I know you guys are doing your best.

that being said...I had a pleasant Signature experience yesterday @ BNA. Young lady even offered to clean my windshield! And today, here in HPN Signature was right on the ball...but Rudy's messed up the catering of course.

Murf

 

[murfdawg998]

So what is the deal with the security at BOS? What could they possibly be looking for?

I think the majority of the security breaches happened to be @ BOS on 9/11 so I would say that is why they have the TSAesque security setup over there @ Signature. Of course, it could just be MASSPORT that mandated the beefed up security.

 

[pushntin]

One thing you know you will get out of Jet Aviation in KBED is crap. Pulled in the other night for a quick turn and dropping off passengers at that. There was not a plane on the ramp and the idiot lineman parked us back by the fence straight to the hangar. WTF! No way to turn around. These guys are atleast constant on doing an awful job.