Construction started in February on a US$12 million FBO at El Paso International Airport in Texas.
The FBO will be operated under the Million Air brand by a company owned and managed by local businessman Paul Forster and his firm Franklin Mountain Investments. Forster is also funding the construction of the new terminal.
Paul Foster said, “Having Million Air locate at El Paso International Airport will be a boost for our economy. We look forward to the efficiencies in corporate and personal travel offered at our FBO.
“Our operation will provide the kind of unmatched services and amenities for air travel that no one in this region has experienced before.”
Expansion
When complete in early 2021, the new FBO at El Paso location will be the fifth Million Air site in Texas and the 32nd location in its network.
Explaining the decision to add another FBO in Texas, Roger Woolsey, CEO of Million Air said, “A lot of aircraft are flying over El Paso and we’ll do a push to introduce El Paso as a fuel-stop destination.
“With four other locations in Texas, we feel like we have a good understanding of the market there.”
The new FBO will be 8.5 miles (14km) east of downtown El Paso and includes property under lease for it to expand.
Million Air and Franklin Mountain Investments have not encountered any challenging aspects to the build so far. According to Woolsey construction has been running smoothly and to schedule. He said, “The ground is now being cleared, and initial land works are in progress. Now we are past the winter we don’t anticipate any weather delaying construction progress.”
Corporate and personal travel
The FBO will have 10,069 square-feet of VIP lobby space, 23,383 square-feet of hangar space, a 6,000 square-foot aircraft porte-cochere, and more than five acres of ramp space capable of supporting any aircraft type. Million Air said that the new FBO will cater for both corporate and personal travelers.
“It will have a café for customers, conference rooms, a theatre room, and all the amenities one would expect from a Million Air, including a complementary refreshment bar, pilots’ lounges, flight planning room, office space, hangar space, snooze rooms and showers,” said Woolsey.
“We always strive to make our customers feel at home, so we have taken every consideration into account to make sure our facility layout and amenities reflect the unparalleled experience that customers have come to expect from Million Air.
“We are confident we can deliver a facility and service level that will be unrivaled at this airport. Our operation will provide unmatched services and amenities for air travel that no one in this region has experienced before,” he added.
Existing airport activity
Once completed the Million Air terminal will join the existing Atlantic Aviation facility, which is already servicing the El Paso Airport’s business and general aviation traffic. Atlantic’ FBO offers maintenance,
fuel sales, hangar storage, flight instruction and
charter services.
Two FBOs did exist at the airport, which has around 50 private jets land there every day, but Atlantic Aviation bought out the Cutter Aviation terminal at the site several years ago.
EL Paso International Airport handles around
3 million passengers a year and is spread across a 7,000 acre site. It is one of the leading airports in the USA for commercial development and has more than 200 businesses and industrial companies within its three industrial parks and air cargo center. Also present on the site are two golf clubs, hotels, retail outlets and restaurants.
El Paso International Airport, Texas
Operating hours: 24/7
Facilities: FBO services provided by Atlantic now and Million Air from early 2021
Runway length: 4/22 – 3664m (12,020ft); 8R/26L – 2,751m (9,025ft); 8l/26R – 1,676m (5,499ft)
Fuel: 100LL, JET-A1
