Wheels Up is opening a new maintenance facility at Palm Beach International Airport (KPBI) later this year and is immediately ceasing operations at its maintenance facilities in Cincinnati and Broomfield, Colorado. Similar operations in Fort Lauderdale will be relocated following the opening of the Palm Beach location.
Additionally, the company is relocating its mobile service operations in Sacramento, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, and certain service units in Burbank, California, to the eastern U.S. This follows Wheels Up's decision late last year to focus more on providing air charter services east of the Mississippi.
“​​We at Wheels Up are continuously evaluating and acting upon opportunities that will drive efficiencies and control costs, all in service of strengthening our business model and improving our member experience," said Wheels Up CEO George Mattson. "The opening of our maintenance facility at PBI is a key strategic step, leveraging our resources and locating our facilities in areas of high flight frequency. As a result of these measures, we are improving reliability and efficiency while reducing costs."
Wheels Up announced the purchase of Mountain Aviation in January 2021, which included the company's seven maintenance hangars at Broomfield and a managed fleet of 59 aircraft. The company has coordinated with MRO providers FEAM Aero and Alex Aviation in Cincinnati and Broomfield, respectively, to provide placement opportunities for affected staff.