Rapid Response Continued from page 33 In that same month, the Atlantic Aviation team at New York-Stewart International Airport handled an MD-83 freighter carrying 12,000 pounds of N95 masks, consigned to a nearby Cardinal Healthcare warehouse, to be forwarded to medical facilities in New York State. At Aspen-Pitkin County Airport (ASE) in Colorado, Atlantic Aviation allowed the storage of a quarter-million masks, face shields, and goggles until they could be loaded into numerous small aircraft for shipment and delivery to Native American tribes that have been hit hard by COVID-19. Storage and loading of the aircraft were provided by Atlantic Aviation at no charge. Historically, general aviation businesses have been actively involved in their communities. For Atlantic Aviation, the pandemic has meant contributing on both a national and local scale. Citing the needs of the elderly, who have been especially isolated as social distancing has taken hold, the company partnered with Go Rentals to donate to the COVID-19 Response Fund established by Meals on Wheels. Meals on Wheels helps independently- living senior citizens who have difficulty shopping for groceries, which has been made that much riskier with the pandemic. Atlantic Aviation is also encouraging all its locations to make an impact locally. As a case in point, in April 2020, Lead Line Service Technician Kordell Sesock and Customer Service Representative Kailey Salter at Reno (RNO) had the idea for the FBO team to donate snacks and drinks to air medical flight crews, many risking their own health to transport critical care patients. More food than anticipated was donated. Oversized lunch bags included Atlantic Aviation water bottles, Gatorade, and an assort- ment of pre-packaged snacks. Planning is now in progress to provide snack bags to RNO airport fire and police. As the COVID-19 crisis continues and other issues continue to impact aviation businesses, Risk Management and Safety Vice President Todd Smith credits NATA with invaluable assistance. He said: “In addition to being a great forum for sharing updated best practice standards for safe operations during the pan- demic, NATA has been invaluable in helping members, large and small, navigate through the changing legisla- tive environment; and they continue to play a leading advocacy role for the industry in these rapidly changing times. A Quick Look at an Old Name in General Aviation—Atlantic Aviation Few general aviation businesses have bragging rights to being in business in excess of 90 years, and under their original name at that. Atlantic Aviation, in fact, does. Founded in 1927 by Henry B. DuPont of the eponymous chemi- cal company in Wilmington, Delaware, Atlantic Aviation has grown into the second largest full-service FBO chain in the United States. In recent years, merger and acquisition (M&A) activities have characterized the FBO industry, as consolidations often spelled the end of some storied names. Atlantic, on the other hand, has been the acquirer, expanding primarily through purchases of other chain operations, as well as some single-location operations. It’s largest acquisition to date occurred in 2007 with the purchase of Mercury Air Centers, Inc., which added 24 FBOs to the Atlantic Aviation family. In 2011, the company expanded into major maintenance when it bought Flightcraft, Inc., a business jet repair spe- cialist with three locations in the Pacific Northwest. Co-located with Atlantic Aviation’s facilities at Eugene (Oregon) Airport (EUG), Portland International Airport (PDX) in Oregon, and King Country (Washington) International Airport- Boeing Field, Flightcraft focuses on all Falcon, Challenger, Textron, Nextant, Gulfstream, and Learjet airframes. Interestingly enough, Atlantic Aviation, itself, has a history of acquisition by outside interests. In 2001, Executive Air Support, an FBO buy-out firm founded by Atlantic Aviation’s current CEO Lou Pepper, purchased the company. Atlantic Aviation’s current owner, New York-based Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation, subsequently acquired it in 2004. At that time Atlantic had just 10 FBOs. 34 Aviation Business Journal | Summer 2020
