Featured FBO

SECRET TO REGIONAL JET CENTER’S SUCCESS:
BE SURROUNDED BY FOLKS WHO LOVE FLIGHT

BENTONVILLE, Ark. – Here on the Springfield Plateau, near the Ozark’s rambling Beaver Lake and rugged Boston Mountains, is an aviation fuel dealer that is carving out a reputation as one of the mid-continent’s premier fixed base operators.

And while the nearby scenery is a draw for tourists, hikers and anglers, the executives who fly into the Regional Jet Center at Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA) are more interested in fishing for consumers than for the Ozark’s abundant smallmouth bass. When transient corporate aircraft fly in to this FBO, they are likely bringing executives to the close-by headquarters of some of America’s leading brands, including the world’s biggest retailer.

Sites like AirNav post customer raves for Regional Jet Center’s friendly service and facilities. But for Tim Thompson, the FBO’s General Manager, it all starts with something more basic.

“We love aviation,” Thompson says matter-of-factly. “That’s the kind of people we try to surround ourselves with, people who love flying.”

The Phillips 66® Aviation-branded dealer focuses on selling jet fuel but offers a bevy of FBO services, including 24-7 line and aircraft maintenance service, a decked-out facility and a heated 160x200-foot corporate hangar with a state-of-the-art, foam fire suppression system and the potential to accommodate a 40-foot tail height.

With fuel sales as a focus, quick turns at the FBO are a specialty, says Thompson. Pilots who call in are greeted by a line person on the ramp and a Phillips 66 fuel truck standing by, ready to pump.

In addition to fast turns, Regional Jet Center promotes the WingPoints® Reward Card from Phillip 66 as a way to drive incremental fuel sales. “We were anxious to get the WingPoints program, and it seems to have really taken off,” Thompson explains.

The FBO is also a Phillips’ Partners-Into-Plane participant and handles fuel for the airport’s direct commercial flights on Allegiant Air, Continental, Delta, US Air, United and American Airlines, the airport’s major carrier. (Partners-Into-Plane is designed to promote FBOs to qualifying high-volume aircraft operators that negotiate bulk fuel pricing directly with Phillips 66. An automated, online pricing and invoicing system simplifies the process for both aircraft operators and FBO managers.)

Regional Jet Center also grows volume by working diligently to develop business relationships, such as the one it’s been nurturing with the Air Force. “We now have flight trainers in here regularly from Vance Air Force Base, Columbus Air Force Base, even NASA,” says Thompson. “In a T-38 Talon this makes a good place to fly in to, take a break, have a glass of tea and then go home.”

Though Regional Jet Center fuels numerous piston planes, jets make up the bulk of the FBO’s traffic, as pilots shift to the Bentonville airport over Fayetteville and other nearby airports. The University of Arkansas Razorbacks football team now uses Regional Jet Center.

The airport is a draw for pilots, explains Thompson, with the security of full-time police on the field, a 24-7 fire station and capabilities other airports don’t have. “We are a handy airport to get in and out of, an easy stop, and people say the tower is friendly,” Thompson says.

Still, Thompson remains a firm believer in that aforementioned fondness for aviation as the foundation for an FBO’s success. People who love what they do not only tend to do it well, says Thompson, they are apt to do it for a long time.

Sure, he says, Regional Jet Center is a “really nice FBO,” with all the amenities pilots need and customers want, like three sleep rooms for pilots, a fitness center, game room, TV lounge and front door service.

But Thompson says what matters is a strong commitment to safety and responsive customer treatment. And that, says Thompson, means having a team in place that appreciates aviation, pays attention to details and plans on sticking around.

“We have a lot of good line guys who have been here a while, all our supervisory staff has been here at least five years, and we keep turnover low,” says Thompson. “Of course, our line is NATA certified. But we work really hard to prepare our line crew, spending about 30 days training each one. They’re not turned loose anytime soon.”

Whether it’s NASA trainer, a Citation or a Cessna, Regional Jet Center treats them all equally, says Thompson, with a crew that remains focused on safety and customer satisfaction – whether the pilots buy fuel or not.

The fuel Thompson fills up on is enthusiasm, the kind he gets just thinking about taking flight in the FBO’s Piper Aztec, soaring over the rivers and lakes of the Ozarks, and remembering why he got into the aviation business in the first place.

For more information about Regional Jet Center, visit regionaljetcenter.com, or call 1-866-XNA-FUEL.