Sugar Land Regional Airport’s city-owned and operated FBO once again took the top spot in the Aviation International News FBO survey. The airport and the FBO enjoy some distinct advantages that combine to boost its popularity, including strong support from the city of Sugar Land, a dedicated long-term team running the airport, an impressive FBO terminal and a strong relationship with the field’s neighbors. The airport’s unique “airport academy” invites local citizens to learn more about their airport and is a strategy that many airports would do well to consider, especially those having trouble persuading neighbors of the importance of their airports.
Sugar Land Regional Airport has been among the top l O FBOs in AIN’s annual survey since 2007, when it shared seventh place with another FBO. The city, which operates the airport, touts the absence of airline traffic as a major draw for business aircraft operators.
The first move Phil Savko made when he took over as general manager of Sugar Land Regional Airport west of Houston 12 years ago was to develop a business plan for the airport. The city owns the airport and has elected to run FBO services itself, instead of inviting interested companies to form independent FBOs at Sugar Land. Savko used to run a similar setup at city owned and -operated Naples Municipal Airport in Florida.
The city bought what used to be Hull Airport in 1991, renamed it Sugar Land Municipal and in 1994 doubled the 4,000-foot runway to 8,000 feet. Savko helped the city council members realize that renaming the airport Sugar Land Regional would help boost traffic and pull new customers away from nearby Hobby Airport and George Bush Intercontinental. ‘We saw traffic starting to head this way,” he said. West Houston’s new energy corridor was rising out of what used to be empty prairie and there was an opportunity to develop the airport to serve the oil companies and other firms building facilities in the area.
Sugar Land’s absence of airline traffic is another big advantage over Hobby and Bush airports. “You can get downtown more quickly than from Hobby,” said Adam Scott, assistant aviation director, when taking into account delays caused by airlines at the other airports. U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents have been housed in their own building at the airport for the past three years, so travelers arriving from outside the U.S. can use Sugar Land as a port of entry; the agents come to the Sugar Land ramp to dear arriving customers.
