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FBO FOCUS
" Our job is to come in and say, 'We're going
to provide 10 line techs or 10 CSRs.' That's
the product we're delivering, " Bourbeau says.
" These are guys we've vetted, " he continues.
" I know exactly how they work. They know
me. They can come into any airport, and they
can work an event. "
" When you start to align yourself with professional
FBO operators, ground personnel or
whatever it is, there is that professional line.
With their quality and experience, they can be
plugged in anywhere, " Swenson adds. " But you
need to get with the right professional crew. "
It's imperative, explains Bourbeau, that
contracted personnel run safe operations and
move aircraft carefully because of the negative
impact and associated costs incurred by
ground damage.
" If we have one incident, it ruins the whole
week, " he says.
" A lot of times, people start cutting corners
because they feel like they're getting behind
and they feel pressure, " Bourbeau continues.
" The human factors start playing into it. We
want to try to limit those and say, 'No matter
how busy you get, this is the process, and this
is how we're going to do it.' "
JET works hand in hand with an FBO
owner to evaluate how local line techs operate
and identify their in-house standard safety
practices to determine if any additional safety
procedures are required to run the event.
In addition to operating safely, customer
service is a key focus as well. Swenson notes
that JET can assist with this by communicating
directly with passengers, pilots and
the airport commission on behalf of an FBO.
" How can we be the liaison for different
people and what does that scope of work look
like? " she says. " We can make safe, efficient
decisions that are customer-focused. Being
able to blend those two are super important. "
To ensure customer-facing responsibilities
are handled correctly, Swenson focuses on
point-of-sale and concierge software, which
she says can look radically different from one
FBO to another - and at times can be outdated.
" Brian and the guys need to know what
flights are coming in, where are we at and what
services are needed. So, a binder with a piece
of paper isn't going to be sufficient, " she says.
What's more, providing an FBO with the
appropriate software is an opportunity to
cross-reference from an invoicing perspective
to ensure paperwork is organized correctly.
" Ultimately, we can have a great experience
and keep them safe. But when you screw up
their invoice, people aren't happy, " says Swenson,
who also oversees flight tracking and
additional communication responsibilities.
Different Dynamics
Every event varies in terms of when arrivals
and departures are expected.
" Final Four events - those are lot more
small- and mid-size cabin aircraft, " Bourbeau
says. " Super Bowl is the who's who of
the United States, so every big, A-list celebrity
is flying in on the biggest jet possible. So, it's
a lot of large-cabin aircraft.
" When we look at events, we look at that
event in the previous cities and we're breaking
it down and saying this is the percentage of
small-cabin, this is the percentage of midsize, "
he continues. " So, when we're looking
at an airport and we're planning the ramp, do
we need to plan for 70 percent Gulfstreams, or
do we need to plan for 70 percent King Airs
and Citations? Because that's going to change
your footprint and your dynamic of how you
can park things. "
And even with best laid plans, the ability
to adjust is paramount.
" If it's something where people are waiting
to see who's playing - like the Super
Bowl - nobody is going to call you and make
a reservation, " Swenson says. " A lot of people
aren't 100 percent sure they're going until they
know who the teams are. It can be a lot more
last-minute with that. "
While changes are to be expected, Swenson
still emphasizes the importance of preparing
in advance, whenever possible.
" I want our customers, before they come
in, to feel like they know what's going on, "
she says. " You can get bogged down when you
have two CSRs that are trying to run a regular
ramp operation and deal with all the incoming
calls, traffic and changes. "
Wearing Many Hats
Much work is required before, during and
after an event.
" The two of us work a lot on getting everything
staged and set up - all of our staff hotels,
DECEMBER 2021/JANUARY 2022 AviationPros.com 33
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december2021january2022

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