High Tiedown Rates Favor Jets, Squeeze Out Pistons

With real estate prices in Southern California as high as they are, and with the increased demand for tiedown space at the diminishing number of airports near populated areas, California has come to an economic showdown: gas or diesel? More specifically, it's "piston or turbine?"

With a finite and diminishing amount of airport real estate; and with high property taxes, developers, NIMBYs, and others all taking a bite out of airports, airport managers are feeling the economic squeeze to get the most out of their facilities. Their land is limited, and they realize that a Cherokee takes up nearly as much space as a Falcon, so the new airport plans are reflecting the shift in airport focus.

Add to the space problem, the other factors that can make jets more-favored: more hours flown, more gallons sold, fewer maintenance bills, for higher amounts, fewer records overall -- it all adds up.

At airports like Van Nuys (VNY), near Los Angeles, the resident jet population has risen from 18 in 1980, to nearly 140 now. Propeller plane population has dropped from nearly 1300, to just over 500, in the same period. The airport's master plan calls for space for 211 jets by 2015. That same plan calls for more non-aviation-use facilities, such as office buildings and light industry, on nearly half the airport's property.

All this means that small-aircraft access to Van Nuys (pictured) and other urban areas is likely to decline sharply over coming years, making the convenience of small-plane ownership less of a reason for private owners to fly.

Aircraft owners will always be in the minority, in those areas where there is a municipal airport; for that reason, it is important that the rest of the population realize the importance of its small-GA facility. Pilots, owners, mechanics, and builders will be out-voted, every time, if the public (not just the airport's neighbors) hasn't grasped the value of the airport. "Everybody uses a mall; hardly anyone uses an GA airport," should not be the mantra that forces all but the highest bidders off the diminsihing properties we preserve as airports. Finding a mile or two of flat, unobstructed terrain, aligned with the prevailing winds, is getting harder all the time; preserving the airports we already have needs to be on everyone's mind.

FMI: www.lawa.org