Business View Magazine | Volume 8, Issue 9

230 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 8, ISSUE 9 and offer a full assortment of pilot services and aircraft maintenance. Other users of the airport include Alpine Air and Key Lime Air that provide cargo flights, and Eagle Air operates aeromedical flights as a subsidiary of Guardian Air. San Luis Valley (SLV) Health also uses the airport, both for their fixed-wing emergency medical transport, a King Air c90 and as a refuelling and maintenance depot for their hospital-based helicopter. SLV Health also worked with the airport this past summer to conduct a mock emergency trial, simulating an aircraft crash and running through all of the emergency procedures necessary for such an event. “We try to promote the airport and the aviation industry in general whenever we can,” says Hickman, “and so for the past couple of years, we have done work with the local schools – everything from daycare through elementary and middle schools – to offer tours of the facility. It is a lot of fun for everyone. just one more step along the way to increased operations. “Our hangars are also 100% filled right now,” Hickman reports. “We have approximately 30 hangars on the field and having them filled is a good problem to have, but still, we need to increase our capacity. We are in the middle of creating a new Master Plan for the airport which should give us plans for the next 20 years of development. We have some exciting things coming up which will maximize the airport fully for general aviation, commercial aviation, and other users. The plan will include usage ideas for our undeveloped land as well. There is a good portion, especially on the west side which could be made available for both aeronautical and non-aeronautical use.” The general aviation side of the airport is managed by the airport FBO, Centric Aviation. They have recently updated their fuel truck fleet