For over 35 years, family-owned FBO PrivateSky® Aviation has served Southwest Florida’s aviation customers—from business travelers and tourists to professional baseball players.
“Southwest Florida is a beautiful area known for our beaches,” said Victoria J. Wolanin, CEO of PrivateSky. “Hertz, Arthrex and Gartner are headquartered here, and in the Spring, we host Major League Baseball teams such as the Boston Red Sox and the Minnesota Twins for Spring Training.”
Wolanin’s father, Vincent, founded PrivateSky, an affiliate of Wolanin Companies—a diversified asset company that has been in business for more than 50 years. Today, Vincent M. Wolanin serves as Chairman.
“It’s an honor to lead our amazing team of ladies and gentlemen, many of whom have been with the company from the beginning,” said Wolanin. “We recognize that our team members are the backbone of every successful mission.”
PrivateSky has proven time and time again to be more than just a traditional FBO. In the fall of 2022, PrivateSky’s team assisted the Southwest Florida community when the FBO turned into a temporary military base to facilitate search-and-rescue missions during and after Hurricane Ian. The FBO became the home base for hundreds of National Guard members, soldiers, fire fighters, and EMS personnel.
“With Hurricane Ian, we reacted immediately to turn our operation into what was needed,” Wolanin said. “Each and every day for over two weeks, a swarm of military rotorcraft including Chinooks, Black Hawks, Lakotas and Ospreys were flying missions from sunrise until sunset carrying survivors and emergency supplies to and from devastated areas of Southwest Florida.”
The impact the FBO had on relief services garnered the attention of President Biden, who flew into PrivateSky aboard Air Force One, describing the activity as “the largest search and rescue force ever assembled in the U.S.”
“We couldn’t be prouder of the PrivateSky team, many of whom lost their own homes to Ian, yet continued to show up each day to assist the National Guard with their operation to save our community at large,” Wolanin said. “Our operation has always been heavily involved in the community and it was an honor to be able to act swiftly to help make this operation successful.”
PrivateSky looks forward to more positive change in the future, as the FBO plans to build a brand new, state-of-the-art fuel farm airside.
Fuel service is of course a top priority, which is why PrivateSky has been a Phillips 66 branded site for over 20 years.
“Contract Fuel is a game changer. Our customers enjoy being able to buy direct and we enjoy the ease of processing,” Wolanin said. “The Phillips 66 and World Fuel teams we work with are the best in the world, and the relationships we have made keep our fueling program top notch.”
PrivateSky is a member of NATA and has received numerous FAA Diamond Awards and AIN Top Rated Operation recognitions.