The airport authority at Laughlin Bullhead International Airport (KIFP) in Bullhead City, Arizona, recently purchased the FBO on the field, renaming it Touch & Go FBO.
The Mohave County Airport Authority purchased the FBO from Signature Flight Support, which had been at KIFP since February 2020, according to James Scheller, airport manager.
He said buying the FBO “made good business sense and created more of a ‘public airport’ for the general aviation community.”
Noting the purchase was a mutual decision between the airport and Signature Flight Support, he added that “it was apparent KIFP’s infrastructure was not suited for Signature’s business model and it was time to make a change.”
Pilots flying into KIFP will see lower prices on fuel, as well as “pricing transparency,” he added.
Other airport officials note that GA traffic is already up 18% due to the changes.
Plans are already in the works to install a new fuel farm with a larger storage capacity and a self-serve 100LL tank, Scheller said.
The airport authority is also working with aircraft mechanics to provide maintenance on the field, as well as private hangar investors to build the infrastructure to support corporate aircraft and local GA traffic at KIPF, he added.
And while there are two CFIs working out of the field, the airport authority hopes to establish a flight school or flying club at the airport, officials concluded.
For more information: FlyIFP.com/General-Aviation
It seems like there is a story here worth digging into. Some follow up interviews with locals, former Signature folks, and new management would be very interesting.
A little disappointed to see they bill using Vector. From the website:
Landing Fees
Vector Airport Systems handles the billing and payments for the landing fee program
on behalf of Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport.
Effective February 1, 2024, landing fees will be charged to all transient GA and Part
135 aircraft operating at Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport. The landing fees will
be assessed at the time of arrival and billed by Vector Airport Systems at the following
rates:
• Based Aircraft and aircraft with a CGLW of 3,999 lbs. or less No Charge
• Aircraft with a CGLW of 4,000 lbs. to 12,499 lbs. $2.00/1,000 bs.
• Aircraft with a CGLW of 12,500 lbs. and over $3.00/1,000lbs.
• All government, angel flight, based aircraft will be exempt from landing fees.
These operations must be submitted to both MCAA ([email protected]/928-
754-2134) and Vector ([email protected]) before the scheduled landing.
Failure to submit prior to landing will result in enforcement of the appropriate f