Story ID: 
Aircraft Growth Outpacing FBO Infrastructure Limits
By: Jessica Reed
Caption: Operational pressures are forcing fundamental changes in safety culture and infrastructure planning
Word Count: 1267
As business jets continue to grow in size and hangars remain unchanged, FBO operators find themselves managing an increasingly complex balancing act that’s about to get even more complicated. The industry faces not only the immediate challenge of fitting larger aircraft into finite ramp and hangar space, but also preparing infrastructure for advanced air mobility (AAM) operations that will demand new charging systems, safety protocols, and financial arrangements—all while grappling with workforce shortages that are spreading existing staff dangerously thin.
The convergence of these challenges was highlighted last week during NATA’s Air Charter Summit, where panelists outlined operational pressures that are forcing fundamental changes in safety culture and infrastructure planning across the FBO industry.
Jason Sahl, director of safety at FBO chain Million Air and chair of NATA’s safety committee, painted a picture of the infrastructure challenge facing modern FBOs. “When I came into the industry in 2003, everybody was still flying King Airs and Citations,” he said. “The airplanes are only getting bigger; the hangars aren’t really getting any bigger.”
The impact extends beyond simple logistics. “Our base customer just upgraded from an [Embraer] Phenom to a [Gulfstream] G650. We don’t have a choice. We’re going to have to figure it out,” Sahl shared in one example, describing the reality facing FBO operators who must accommodate customer fleet upgrades regardless of infrastructure limitations.
From his operational perspective, the solution seems straightforward: “My biggest challenge on the ramp has always been that I want every last square inch of our leasehold to be paved. I don’t want to see any wasted space. As an operator on the ground, I want every piece of pavement I could possibly get.”
However, the reality of airport development often conflicts with operational needs. “But I’m not in those discussions, so I’m often handed what I’m handed,” Sahl acknowledged.
The pressure to accommodate larger aircraft and increased traffic has catalyzed an unexpected positive development: a fundamental shift in FBO safety culture. Sahl described how safety management systems (SMS), while not required for FBOs, are becoming increasingly prevalent as customer demands and industry best practices trickle down from airlines and Part 135 operators.
“With SMS being a larger part of the conversation at the FBO level, it’s still not a requirement, but we’re seeing more and more organizations jump on that. We’re seeing the paradigm shift at the upper [level], and maybe even at the executive level, of balancing that we need to be really, really aggressive about getting all this extra traffic and getting all these extra airplanes and being able to balance that with safety.”
This represents a significant cultural change from earlier industry practices. “That was a conversation that I’d never heard of in the first 10 or 15 years that I was around working on the ramp. It was always, ‘We need another airplane,’” Sahl said.
The shift has been driven partly by customer requirements. “The [Part] 135 operators are starting to ask those questions of the people who handle them on the ground. If you want to handle my aircraft, we’re going to have to come in every now and then and ask these questions.”
Critical to this transformation is leadership engagement. “No safety program is going to be successful without buy-in from the top level,” Sahl emphasized. “As the director of safety, I can come out and get in front of my people all I want and say that I want you to be safe…but they’re definitely going to listen to the person that writes the checks. They’re definitely going to listen to the person if their name is written on the side of the building.”
Operational Pressures at Critical Airports
The space and safety challenges are particularly acute at airports experiencing displacement traffic from operational disruptions elsewhere. Million Air’s White Plains location exemplifies these pressures as it absorbs overflow from Newark and Teterboro disruptions.
“Our busiest location in my network is at White Plains, and what’s happening at Newark and Teterboro, all of it’s coming to White Plains. 100% of it,” Sahl reported. “In my part of the business, White Plains comes up every single day about the extra influx of traffic.”
Managing this increased volume requires careful attention to safety decision-making on the ground. Sahl described his hands-on approach: “When they make those safety decisions: ‘Hold on, let’s hold the airplane on the taxiway, let’s give ourselves 15 to 20 minutes to settle ourselves out,’ I personally go find the supervisor that made that decision and say, ‘Hey man, thank you for doing that. You made the right call. I know that’s a hard call.’”
Infrastructure and traffic challenges are also exacerbated by ongoing workforce shortages that force remaining staff to take on expanded responsibilities across multiple functions.
Advanced Air Mobility: The Next Infrastructure Challenge
As FBOs struggle with current capacity constraints, they must simultaneously prepare for AAM operations that will require entirely new infrastructure investments. Juliet Jordan, managing director of industry affairs and innovation at NATA, outlined the complexity of AAM preparation during committee discussions.
“What does the infrastructure look like for AAM? Who’s paying for the electricity that needs to go into the airports that are going to house the chargers for these devices?” Jordan asked, highlighting fundamental questions that remain unresolved.
The financial responsibility remains contentious. “In many cases, FBOs are housing the infrastructure for advanced air mobility, meaning that then, the FBOs are being pushed to specifically pay for this infrastructure and to specifically pay for this electricity. But it should be a collaborative process. It should be a mix between airports and FBOs to get together, to provide this kind of service to the industry.”
While progress is being made, Jordan said that realistic timelines remain extended. “I got the great question of time. How long are we away from flying taxis in the sky picking me up from my door and dropping me off to my location?
“I love this topic. It’s near and dear to my heart, but I also live in the real world, and the real world dictates that it’s gonna take a sizeable amount of time for both the safety case, the infrastructure case, financing, and more.”
Her regulatory experience informs a cautious outlook: “If I know one or two things about regulation, it’s slow as molasses, that’s for sure, and so it’s gonna take a while to push for that fight.”
Early AAM Infrastructure Investments
Some FBO operators are beginning to prepare for AAM operations. Million Air has already installed chargers at its Tallahassee, Florida location, with other locations planning similar investments based on market demand.
“We have one or two locations that we know they’re wanting to get ahead of this, and it’s also market-based as well because, again, we have locations in L.A. We have locations in New York. Those are going to be the biggest hotbeds for whenever this actually does take off,” Sahl explained.
However, significant safety questions remain unresolved. “Are we OK with putting this thing in a hangar, not putting it in a hangar, putting it next to a traditional avgas fuel farm? We don’t know the answers to any of that yet.”