Albany International Courts Corporate, GA Aviation

Now, here's something you don't see every day. An airport that's actually on the hunt for more business -- especially corporate and GA business.

Albany International Airport CEO John O'Donnell said it's not necessarily about the money.

"It is a small financial component to the airport finances," he told the Albany (NY) Times-Union. "However, we look at general aviation as an opportunity -- the opportunity to bring in additional jobs. They are proponents and promoters of aviation, and that is within our mission statement."

Over the past several years, GA pilots have reportedly started to shy away from ALB, citing high fuel costs and not enough repair facilities. But when told about the airport's planned focus on non-commercial aviation, pilots like Al Chenot said, "We would love it. If there's something wrong with your plane, a lot of times it's not flyable, and what do you do? You have to bring someone down from Saratoga."

But growth can come at a price. WHen ALB's premier FBO, Aircraft Services International Group (ASIG), heard that Plattsburgh-based Champlain Enterprises was thinking about a fuel farm, maintenance and de-icing business, President Keith Ryan took his beef to the airport authority.

"We'd like to feel a little love, which at this point, we don't," Ryan said, as quoted in the Times-Union. "We feel the airport authority would prefer us to pack up our assets and leave."

Champlain's CEO, John Sullivan, said he's not out to be a cutthroat competitor. "We're going to hang out our shingle and see who shows up. We're not trying to get in and duke it out here with anybody. We just dutifully submitted our application, and we await the good graces of the airport authority."

Talk about competition -- especially when it comes to fuel prices -- makes GA pilots all warm inside. Right now, they can find self-serve fuel at $3.09 a gallon. If someone at ASIG has to pump it, the price goes up to $3.80.

"Aircraft Service International is probably the highest fuel price we've been able to find," said Craig Dotlo, AOPA's northeast regional representative. "In addition, they charge a $13 landing fee for aircraft that aren't based at Albany, plus there's a $10.56 parking fee and a $15 terminal fee. Those are a lot of fees," Dotlo said. "It's pretty excessive for an airport the size of Albany to charge that much."

However, for the most part, ALB's efforts to draw business away from some of the smaller regional airports appear to be very popular with GA and corporate pilots. And O'Donnell says he's going to work to make it even more so. "Our pitch is that we want to have as much competition here at the airport as possible to keep the fuel prices low and to keep the ground services prices low."

FMI: www.albanyairport.com