10/4/09 - Green Bay Press Gazette: General aviation vital to the economy - Niel Ritchie
10/4/09
Green Bay Press Gazette
General Aviation vital to the economy
by Niel Ritchie
Al Timmerman, owner of Titletown Jet Centre at Austin Straubel International Airport in Ashwaubenon, rattles off the services the business provides daily to pilots and business travelers:
Charter services, flight instruction, maintenance, air ambulance and conference facilities, to name just a few.
Titletown, with 29 employees, is one of hundreds of businesses in the state tied to general aviation to the tune of about $3.5 billion in economic impact, according to a survey released this week by the Alliance for Aviation Across America.
Much of the business in the area is tied to air travel via general aviation.
"It's a business tool," Timmerman said. "What Titletown provides is an entry point for any business coming here."
Like almost all other sectors, Titletown has felt the effects of the recession, but Timmerman said the diversification of the operation has helped it weather trying economic times.
While they have seen some decreases in aircraft traffic, they've seen an uptick in maintenance services as people hold on to their aircraft longer, requiring additional maintenance. Avionics change at a rapid pace, keeping that side of the business busy, and some in the business world have enrolled in flight training to do away with the trials of flying on airlines for business.
Titletown recently opened another flight training facility in Sheboygan to help meet demand.
"A lot of business professionals are now learning to fly because of the inconvenience of flying the airlines," Timmerman said. "We have a group this week purchasing an aircraft for three professionals, and they're all taking flight training … because they want to fly for business."
Titletown's charter service is also up thanks in part to people avoiding airline travel with the threat of swine flu.
Attention to aviation
Early last week, the Alliance for Aviation Across America pulled together a number of officials in communities with ties to the aviation industry, including Carl Brewer, mayor of Wichita, Kan., one of the hubs of the American aviation industry.
"We need our representatives in Washington, D.C., to give us the same emphasis they're giving the automobile industry," he said. "Go out … and create an environment where individuals can purchase planes and get the loans … and telling them it's not bad and it's not a sin to use your aircraft to conduct business."
Brewer and others say general aviation isn't just for the elite.
There has been a backlash against general aviation in the wake of the Big Three hearings in Washington revealing executives used private jets for travel before asking congress for bailout money.
Rep. Vernon Ehlers (R-Mich.) gave examples of day-to-day use of general aviation, citing a Grand Rapids construction contractor that used general aviation to expand its market into Canada to a manufacturer that uses planes to deliver parts in a timely manner.
Both are examples of economic growth through the use of smaller planes and carriers.
The employment factor
In 2005, a study by Merge Global Inc. concluded that employment from general aviation totaled about 1.3 million jobs nationally, according to the alliance. That study also put the total economic contribution of general aviation at $150 billion annually.
Officials who were part of a conference call when the survey was released said among other things the site was designed to show the importance of general aviation in smaller communities.
They also said showing the role air travel plays in the American economy may have a bearing on how much funding is allocated to maintaining aviation infrastructure around the nation.
"This infrastructure is just like roads and bridges and it needs to be thought about that way," said Niel Ritchie of the League of Rural Voters. "This is about the future of economic development in this country."
General aviation in Wisconsin provides 3,240 jobs directly, and 16,827 indirectly, according to the survey. The state gets another financial boost each summer with the Experimental Aviation Association's AirVenture show in Oshkosh, which brings in an additional $110 million in spending, according to the EAA.
Clarence Schampers, manager of Shawano City/County Airport and Shawano Flying Service, said he's seen a substantial decline in both business and other traffic during the recession. He estimates the airport is getting about six business flights a week, down from about 18 when times were better.
"You've got to look at an airport sort of like a four-lane highway," he said. "If you don't have access to a city (economic growth) isn't going to happen … it's part of the economy."
Schampers said he isn't expecting a major increase in traffic until next spring at the earliest.
Shawano Flying Service has two employees.
Titletown is in the midst of a multimillion-dollar project building new pilot and passenger service areas and expanding hanger and maintenance space, Timmerman said.
He said the average resident may not realize the amount of the commerce in the area that general aviation services touch in one fashion or another.
"People look at general aviation as the rich guy going out and flying his airplane, but it's so much more than that, it's the air ambulance, search and rescue," he said. "There are so many different facets to aviation that people just don't realize."
Correction
The Experimental Aviation Association's AirVenture show in Oshkosh, which brings in $110 million in spending to the state, according to the EAA.
