Signature Outperforms FBO Peers

The Signature Flight Support FBO chain has outperformed a flagging market in the first six months of this year, according to parent company BBA Aviation. Revenues at Signature were down 14 percent compared with the first half of last year, but BBA says that this compares favorably with an average 26-percent revenue decline in the U.S. business aviation ground handling sector, as well as a 20-percent drop in Europe. BBA
Aviation’s revenues for the first half of this year dropped only 2 percent, to $907.8 million, and operating profits fell by the same percentage to $83.5 million. Group CEO Simon Pryce said the downturn will likely present good opportunities for BBA to acquire new assets, in particular for Signature, which might be able to buy FBOs at more “realistic” prices.