Business View Magazine | Volume 9, Issue 1

165 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 1 ROCKY MOUNT-WI LSON REGIONAL A I RPORT renovation project being Hangar #1, which was part of the original construction of the airport back in 1969. The old maintenance building is being repurposed into a Ground Service Equipment (GSE) building and the Firehouse and Electrical Vault are getting a much needed facelift. Viventi adds, “We recently completed a 23 T-Hangar construction project and all the leases were literally signed before we even had the Certificates of Occupation (COs) issued. We also recently finished a state-of-the-art dual 8000 gallon Self Serve Fuel Farm project, incorporating the new QTPOD 4000 kiosk that has opened the FBO to pilots who need fuel after hours.” The new Self-Serve Fuel farm was open and pumping fuel just in time for the Sept. 2021 Labor Day weekend. Captain Gary Shelley was one of the first customers to try out the equipment, when he pulled up to fill his 1968 Champion Citabria nicknamed ‘Tinkerbell’. The new fuel farm is equipped with the latest credit/ “That airport was north of where we are today,” reports Dion Viventi, Managing Director of Rocky Mount-Wilson Regional Airport. “There was also a City of Wilson Industrial Airport and they were less than 25 miles apart. When the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) restricted how many airports could be licensed in an area, the North Carolina State Department of Aviation offered both facilities the opportunity to combine forces. The object was to build one single airport on the county line between three counties and write a new a charter for all three counties and both cities for an Airport Authority. The state bought the property in 1964 and that new airport was built in 1969.” Today’s Rocky Mount-Wilson Regional Airport is owned and operated by the seven-member Rocky Mount-Wilson Regional Airport Authority. With its 7,000 foot runway, RWI serves the general aviation needs of the five funding sponsors: the City of Rocky Mount, the City of Wilson, Edgecombe County, Nash County, and Wilson County. When asked what draws people to the region, Viventi boasts, “BBQ BBQ BBQ! We have a deep history of the craft here and the best collection of BBQ restaurants in NC. We have customers who fly in from across the country just to eat BBQ here. Just ask any member of our staff, and we will give you a list of all the fantastic BBQ restaurants in the local area. You will not be disappointed.” Fuel sales at RWI have increased over 500% and operations have increased over 1000% since the airport took over the Fixed Based Operations (FBO). They have doubled their fuel volume capacity in response to the increased demand, which is mainly based on the airport’s very low fuel prices. In July, 2021, the airport authority embarked on a mission to begin restoring and renovating its legacy hangars and equipment facilities. The first