Van Nuys FBO Petersen Aviation Set for Sale

Long-time Van Nuys, Calif. FBO Petersen Aviation will be acquired by Maguire Aviation, a Los Angeles-based aircraft management company, under a purchase agreement revealed to Petersen employees last Friday. Maguire v-p George Witchell said that the transaction awaits the approval of Los Angeles World Airports, which owns and operates Van Nuys Airport (VNY). Maguire expects to complete the acquisition in 30 to 90 days, after which the FBO’s name will change. Petersen Aviation is an Exxon Avitat facility housed in distinctive Spanish hacienda-style buildings. One of five FBOs at VNY, it is the top-ranked facility on the field, according to the 2006 AIN FBO Survey. Petersen Aviation also offers aircraft sales and management. The late patriarch of the Maguire family, Robert Maguire, Jr., is known as the “Irish Moses” for his work as chief pilot of Operation Magic Carpet, which airlifted 40,000 Yemeni Jewish refugees to Israel after World War II.