Story ID: 422_BanyanLABACE15.doc
Banyan Air Expands Maintenance Service Hours
By: Chad Trautvetter
Caption: The Fort Lauderdale, Florida, FBO is extending the availability of maintenance service.
Word Count: 317
Banyan Air Service (Booth 1027), based at Florida’s Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, expanded its maintenance operations last month by adding a second eight-hour shift, seven days a week. The new hours of operation are Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. until midnight and on Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. The company offers a range of maintenance services, including airframe and avionics, for many brands of turbine-powered aircraft such as Pilatus; Textron King Air and Citation; Bombardier Learjet and Challenger; Hawker and Falcon. In addition, Banyan Air Service is factory authorized as a service center for Beechcraft, Piaggio, Quest, and HondaJet.

Along with its FAA repair station and EASA repair station certificates, Banyan Air Service holds certificates in several island nations and Latin American countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia and Venezuela. In fact, nearly half of the company’s maintenance business is from customers in Latin America, noted Ed Bracero, who is in charge of Banyan’s technical sales in the region.

Bracero said this is because U.S.-based Banyan can complete aircraft maintenance in a more timely manner than shops in Latin America because importing parts into the region routinely causes delays. For example, Bracero told AIN that Banyan can perform an annual inspection on a Pilatus PC-12 in about three days; a similar inspection done at a shop at Chile could take a month, he said, due to snags in getting parts through customs. And with the recently expanded shop hours, he said Banyan can offer speedy, high-quality aircraft maintenance for customers, as demand for these services continues to increase.

Besides maintenance services, Banyan has a full-service FBO and pilot store at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, which has on-site U.S. Customs. In addition, the company offers pre-owned aircraft sales and is the U.S. Southeast dealer for the HondaJet.