Sonoma Aviation's two California FBOs—Sonoma Jet Center at Charles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport (KSTS) and Carlsbad Jet Center at Mc Clellan-Palomar Airport (KCRQ)—each have achieved Stage 3 registration under IBAC's International Standard for Business Aircraft Handling (IS-BAH).
Launched in 2014, the voluntary program is based on safety management systems and its format closely follows that of its sister IS-BAO program for aircraft operators. Participating companies must undergo a third-party audit for each stage to ensure they implement and meet industry best practices, with Stage 3 demonstrating the highest degree of adoption and rigor. Over the past decade, just 34 business aviation handling companies have achieved the Stage 3 ranking worldwide, with 12 of them in the U.S.
“This is a significant milestone for our operations, demonstrating our consistent commitment to upholding the highest standards of safety and service,” said Sonoma Aviation CEO Josh Hochberg. “As a company that lives our values, it is especially meaningful to us to achieve the IS-BAH Stage 3 safety standard at Carlsbad Jet Center and Sonoma Jet Center mere days after our highly successful Green Fuel Day, which raised awareness of the availability of sustainable aviation fuel at Sonoma Jet Center.”