Aviation Business Journal 1st Quarter 2013 - 39

Epps Aviation

Continued from page 37

First Epps-built airplane. Built 1907 by Ben T. Epps, Athens, Georgia.

serves as treasurer, represented the
association before the U.S. House of
Representatives Committee on Small
Businesses, providing testimony
concerning the airport user fee issue.
In summation of her testimony, Epps
stated that user fees could kill the
general aviation community in the U.S.
“Essentially, I told the committee
that we already have a system that
works, through fuel taxes,” she noted.
“I can tell you that there is a lot of
opposition to this, but there is also a
lot of education needed with respect
to the fact that implementation of
airport user fees on general aviation
would ultimately not be an equitable
situation. This is because all airplanes
impact the airport infrastructure and
air traffic control differently. With
that in mind, would it be fair to ask

Aviation Business Journal | 1st Quarter 2013	

the owner of a single-engine piston
aircraft to pay the same user fees as a
Global Express operator?”
Epps stated that if user fees are
imposed a “Pandora’s Box” would
be opened that would levy fees on
a diversity of users such as student
pilots, air ambulance operators, and
even “angel flights” in which operators
donate their aircraft to fly seriously
ill people to medical facilities. “If you
look at Europe, you do not see the kind
of general aviation activity we have in
the U.S., and high user fees are part of
the reason,” she remarked.
The whole issue, Epps observed,
has taken on a new dynamic, with
many unanswered questions.
“Four to five years ago, it was
a battle between the commercial
airlines and general aviation in

that the airlines were lobbying very
hard to get general aviation to pay
user fees,” she said. “Today, that
is no longer true because both the
airlines and the general aviation
sector are more concerned with
where the money will go. Will it go,
as promised, to develop the air traffic
control system further and improve
airports, or will it be diverted to
general deficit reduction? This is
what a lot of people want to know.”
As a 40-year NATA member,
Epps Aviation continues to view
the association’s expertise on the
legislative and regulatory side of
aviation as essential for the industry,
especially in the face of the current
issues.
“The challenges facing general
aviation today are naturally different
from what they were 20 years ago,”
said Epps. “I’m very positive about
the change in leadership that has
just occurred at NATA and the
contributions Tom Hendricks will
make to general aviation. NATA has
always been a voice for the general
aviation business and will continue to
be so.”
Asked how FBO operators can
continue to sustain and grow their
operations today, Epps gave this
advice: “Hang in there, and don’t
discount yourself out of business!
Remember that it takes a lot of
talented employees to provide the
customer service that this industry
has grown to expect. Show respect
to your employees, provide a
positive work environment and your
employees will take good care of your
customers! And, a little succession
planning never hurts.”

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