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Old 29th November 2003 | 05:54
  #25 (permalink)  
ChrisVJ
20 Anniversary
 
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 517
Likes: 37
From: Kelowna Wine Country
How about asking yourself what puts people off flying there and then put that right. I fly from a delightful village municipally owned airport BUT:

1. The Loos are in the terminal building which is now leased by a local sight seeing co. No public loos. Four or five times last Summer alone I was obliged to tell visitors who got out of planes with their knees tight together that the only option was the stinking bivvy on the onld campground. They don't come back.

2. Someone was going to open a cafe in the terminal if we got a scheduled service. We didn't. Visitors arrive, get out of their planes, say "Gee isn't it beautiful here?" Get back in and we never see them again.

3. Some social life. Three years ago someone started an outstation for a flight school there. Poor instructor had no life at all. There were eight of us learning to fly (Re-learning in my case,) but everyone did their lesson, shook hands and went home. I never even met any of the other guys. You need a social centre and a program. Think Golf clubs, sailing clubs. etc. The social thing is three quarters of the battle. I went sailing on a boat my daughter was crewing on a couple of years ago. Afterwards there were about three hundred of us at the well priced buffet, There were only about twelve boats in the race, the rest were watchers, family, non sailing members, you name it. The point is the place was buzzing. Pilots like to hang around and talk flying, and while they do they can be spending. Have a club house just big enough for a small knees up!

4. Local access. Doesn't matter how, but is has to be convenient. Again, far too many visitors, especially from the USA arrive here, look around, ask how to get to the village and when they are told the taxi can be here in 30 mins ( just the way it works, the village is about three minutes by car,) and to use the pay phone, well, they are GONE, never to be seen again.

What you might do on the positive side.

1. Low rent, get a small service facility in. All our locals (except the two of us flying experimentals,) have to take their planes 150 miles for service. If we had a low rent/ fair price service they would be coming here from the city to get the value.

2. Flying school. Preferably a rent paying independant. The students are your future hangarage and tie down and catering and gas and servicing business.

3 Give a national sales co for a decent sport/GA plane line a break on the rent. They will bring people in and add some local excitement.

4. Make sure you can do some small commercial development around the perimeter. Get someone to put in a specialised draw. Maybe an aero related museum, not big things but not so obscure no one is interested. Old log books, letters from famous aviators, Advertise on the internet as a home for someones' collection and see what comes up. If you can't decide where to fly wouldn/t you rather go somewhere there is something to see or do?

Damn, I'm getting envious of your opportunity!
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