Friday, July 16, 2004

During last week’s Allen & Co. gathering of international tycoons, Mike Rasch, general manager of Sun Valley Aviation, said it parked 15 of the largest corporate jets allowed into Friedman Memorial Airport--the Gulfstream 5 and the Bombardier Global Express. In all, Sun Valley Aviation, which is responsible for servicing and parking transient aircraft as the Hailey field’s only fixed base operator, parked 31 jets at any one time. Express photo by Willy Cook

Airport juggles private planes

Friedman faces shortage of ramp space

---

By PAT MURPHY
Express Staff Writer

Although Friedman Memorial Airport juggled space to accommodate dozens of corporate jets during the Allen & Co. conference last week, next year may not run so smoothly.

Airport manager Rick Baird and Sun Valley Aviation general manager Mike Rasch told the airport authority board Tuesday that with the closing of ramp space on the airport’s east side, fewer parking spaces will be available henceforth at the new south ramp area for events that attract large numbers of aircraft.

Rasch also said that an increasing number of larger corporate jets with wider wingspans also reduce available space. Two of the popular new generation Gulfstream 5 jets with 20-foot wider wingspans take the space of three Gulfstream 4 jets.

During last week’s Allen & Co. gathering of international tycoons, Rasch said Sun Valley Aviation parked 15 of the largest corporate jets allowed into Friedman--the Gulfstream 5 and the Bombardier Global Express. In all, he said they parked 31 jets at any one time.

Friedman board member Martha Burke, also a Hailey City Council member, asked whether it would be possible to require advance reservations for ramp space.

Rasch said that would be impractical. Pilots arriving without reservations and seeing empty spaces reserved for late-arriving aircraft would resent being told there were no spaces, he said.

"That (a reservations system) hasn’t worked over the years," Rasch said. "We found the best solution is first-come, first-served."

If Sun Valley Aviation, which is responsible for servicing and parking transient aircraft as the field’s only fixed base operator, runs out of ramp space, Rasch said pilots would be required to deplane their passengers and go to Twin Falls or Boise, or return to their home airport.

"There’s a physical limit to the airport," Rasch said. "It’s something you have to live with."

Baird said Rasch and Sun Valley Aviation did a remarkable job handling such a rush of aircraft at one time and creating goodwill for the Hailey airport with their efficient operations.

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.