flyingfcuk
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- Nov 19, 2003
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SALEM -- Financial turbulence has grounded SkyTaxi, a startup airline based in Salem that serves rural communities all over Oregon.
SkyTaxi has vacated its maintenance hangar at McNary Field in Salem and laid off employees, Chairman Ray Morrow said.
Even so, Morrow said he is counting on finding venture capital to get the business aloft again.
"We're very optimistic," he said. "The bottom line is we have lots and lots of customers and a business model that works. The shutdown is temporary."
The company's strategy is to provide air service to towns overlooked by the large airlines through a network of SkyTaxi franchisees. The service depends on a fleet of small, twin-engine, propeller-driven aircraft owned and operated by the franchisees in communities such as Aurora, Baker City, Bend, Corvallis, Hillsboro, Klamath Falls, La Grande, Medford, Newport and Roseburg.
The problems began in October, when a key operations manager abruptly quit. The position needed to be filled to meet Federal Aviation Administration requirements, and SkyTaxi was forced to suspend its flights for several weeks until a replacement was hired, Morrow said.
SkyTaxi briefly resumed operations, but the nearly monthlong suspension of its flights stretched its finances. So the company decided it was best to stop operations and look for additional capital.
-- The Associated Press
SkyTaxi has vacated its maintenance hangar at McNary Field in Salem and laid off employees, Chairman Ray Morrow said.
Even so, Morrow said he is counting on finding venture capital to get the business aloft again.
"We're very optimistic," he said. "The bottom line is we have lots and lots of customers and a business model that works. The shutdown is temporary."
The company's strategy is to provide air service to towns overlooked by the large airlines through a network of SkyTaxi franchisees. The service depends on a fleet of small, twin-engine, propeller-driven aircraft owned and operated by the franchisees in communities such as Aurora, Baker City, Bend, Corvallis, Hillsboro, Klamath Falls, La Grande, Medford, Newport and Roseburg.
The problems began in October, when a key operations manager abruptly quit. The position needed to be filled to meet Federal Aviation Administration requirements, and SkyTaxi was forced to suspend its flights for several weeks until a replacement was hired, Morrow said.
SkyTaxi briefly resumed operations, but the nearly monthlong suspension of its flights stretched its finances. So the company decided it was best to stop operations and look for additional capital.
-- The Associated Press
