Wheels Up Experience, Inc. will open a new MRO facility at Palm Beach International Airport to serve its geographic network and flight demand density by partnering with MRO providers FEAM Aero and AVEX Aviation for affected staff.
Wheels Up Experience, Inc. is setting a new industry-acclaimed precedent with the coming launch of an innovative maintenance facility located at Palm Beach International Airport (PBI) in 2024. This investment represents a strategic realignment of the company’s maintenance resources to better serve its geographic network and flight demand density. Wheels Up has collaborated with MRO providers FEAM Aero and AVEX Aviation in Cincinnati and Broomfield, CO, respectively, to facilitate placement opportunities for affected staff.
To prepare for the opening of the PBI facility, resources will be realigned from the existing facilities that have low utilization rates and low organic network flow and flight traffic. This will result in the closure of current maintenance operations in Cincinnati and Broomfield, CO, and the transfer of mobile service units from Sacramento, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, and a select number of units from Burbank, CA to the Eastern U.S. Additionally, resources from Wheels Up’s Fort Lauderdale facility will be moved to PBI in the very near future.
“We at Wheels Up are continuously evaluating and acting upon opportunities that will drive efficiencies and control costs, all in service of strengthening our business model and improving our member experience,” said George Mattson, CEO, Wheels Up. “The opening of our new state-of-the-art maintenance facility at PBI is a key strategic step, leveraging our resources and locating our facilities in areas of high flight frequency. As a result of these measures, we are improving reliability and efficiency while reducing costs as we continue to drive toward Adjusted EBITDA profitability later this year,” he further added.
The shutdowns of the Cincinnati and Broomfield, CO, facilities will be effected immediately. The Fort Lauderdale move has been left to take place post-opening at the Palm Beach facility.
“The decision to close these facilities is not one that we made lightly. Our entire maintenance team is responsible for driving meaningful improvement across key customer experience indicators, particularly total completion rate and on-time performance metrics,” said Dave Holtz, Chief Operating Officer, Wheels Up. “Our people are absolutely crucial to our success, and we are highly appreciative of the MRO providers we have partnered with to ensure that we take care of the staff affected by these closures in every way we possibly can,” he further added.
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Wheels Up is a major player in the U.S. on-demand private aviation market, recognized to be one of the largest companies in the industry. The company provides a global aviation solution that boasts a fleet of about 3,000 aircraft of varying classes and a safe network of about 15,000 charter operators throughout the world, all working in the light of unwavering dedication towards safety and excellence of service. Members and clients get access to charter as well as membership programs, as well as a unique array of commercial travel benefits through a strategic partnership with Delta Air Lines, and safety, security solutions with complex and managed services, all catering to private aviation, individuals, industries, government agencies, and civil organizations.
