The 1¼ miles around the Churchill Downs track is 6,600 feet, just a bit more than half the length of the runways at Louisville International Airport, where your aircraft well may be parked at Atlantic Aviation for the 142nd Run for the Roses, aka the 2016 Kentucky Derby.
More than 1,000 aircraft are expected to arrive at Louisville area airports between Thursday, May 5 and Race Day morning, Saturday May 7. Your flight crew will have filed the appropriate special flight plans to ensure a smooth arrival – and probably added a few extra gallons of fuel, in case of unexpected en route air traffic delays (remember, Louisville is the number one UPS air cargo hub).
And to make sure that you’re able to make that post-race run down the taxiway, several business jet and engine manufacturers and service organizations will have support crews onsite to ensure that your flights to and from the Bluegrass State are smooth and trouble-free.
These companies are staging technicians, parts, and tooling on standby in Louisville to ensure that your prospects for post-Derby departure remain rosy:
Gama Aviation, the global aviation services company, has increased its Aircraft on Ground (AOG) peak period support in preparation for the large wave of private jets expected in Louisville for the Kentucky Derby.
Dennis Richey, Executive Vice President, commented: “We look forward to these special events. We have been positioning our AOG/mobile teams for our customer base at various locations already. We know and understand the time constraints our customers are under. This has allowed us to showcase this part of our business year after year.”
In the beginning of April, Gama Aviation handled more than 150 callouts for their customers at the Masters Tournament. In addition to the Kentucky Derby, preparations have already begun for the Players Championship and the U.S Open to follow.
Toll-Free: 1-855-264-4262
Visit the Gama Aviation Website for more information.
Bombardier will be providing onsite support at the 2016 Kentucky Derby with two technicians and one of its dedicated Customer Response Trucks, to provide fast resolution of “Aircraft on Ground” (AOG) and unscheduled maintenance events for customers flying in and out of the Louisville area from Friday, May 6 to Sunday, May 8.
Those CRT mobile units are manned by a team of technicians and carry state-of-the-art diagnostics equipment supporting Learjet, Challenger, and Global aircraft, as well as a wide array of equipment to perform a variety of unscheduled or scheduled maintenance tasks.
Should customers require assistance, contact the Customer Response Centre (CRC) at the numbers listed below. For more information on all of Bombardier’s Services & Support, please contact CRC directly:
Toll-Free: 1-866-538-1247
International: (+1) 514-855-2999
Challenger & Global E-mail: ac.yul@aero.bombardier.com
Learjet E-mail: ac.ict@aro.bombardier.com
Visit the Bombardier website for more information.
Dassault will have a Field Tech Rep available in the Louisville area, as well as a supply of spare parts at the UPS warehouse, available for any Falcon Jet AOG situation. Additionally, dedicated Dassault technical teams and offsite resources will be available at Falcon Authorized Service Centers.
Dassault also will provide operator support at a number of other special events this year, including: Art Basel in Switzerland (June 16-19); the European Soccer Cup, France (June 10-July 10); and the Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro (Aug 5-21).
Toll-Free: 1-800-232-5266
Service Phone: (201) 541-4747
Spares Phone: (201) 541-4809
Visit the Dassault Falcon Jet website for more information.
Embraer Executive Jets will deploy a dedicated mobile rescue unit and team to Louisville to ensure its customers will be fully supported in any situation. With almost 1,000 business jets in more than 60 countries, Embraer is prepared to assist its customers anywhere in the world, any time of the day. Embraer has developed an integrated comprehensive customer support plan for major global events with anticipated extraordinary air traffic like the Kentucky Derby. This Plan includes broad logistic support and special procedures, in order to dispatch parts as required from its distribution center.
Embraer will have field service representatives strategically positioned in Louisville, backed by its award-winning global network of owned and authorized service centers and the 24/7 Contact Center.
Toll-Free: 1-888-362-2648
Visit the Embraer website for more information.
Gulfstream will be supporting its operators in Louisville with Gulfstream’s largest Field and Airborne Support Team (FAST) vehicle, three technicians, driver, and field service representative Tim Centivany. The vehicle is a specially equipped 74-foot/22.6-meter tractor-trailer, called FAST1, and will be adjacent to the ramp at Atlantic Aviation’s FBO from May 3 through May 8 to support the full range of Gulfstream business jets with a swift, well-coordinated response to all AOG situations.
Toll-Free: 1-800-810-4853
Phone: (912) 965-4178
Visit the Gulfstream website for more information.
The Regional Support Team as well as the Aero Tech Support (ATS) Team staff will be as always available for any assistance.
Toll-Free (ATS Hotline): 1-855-808-6500
E-mail: AeroTechSupport@Honeywell.com
Visit the Honeywell website for more information.
As part of its 1CALL maintenance support group, Textron Aviation will have one of its 60 Mobile Service Units (MSUs) stationed onsite at Louisville International Airport May 6 through 8 to support the full line of Cessna Citation, Beechcraft King Air, and Hawker turbine business jet and turboprop aircraft. These MSUs are equipped to perform limited inspections, engine, tire and brake service, and more.
Phone: (316) 517-2090
Visit the Textron Aviation website for more information.
Publisher of Business Aviation Advisor, has nearly 50 years in business aviation including executive positions at aircraft management/charter and ground services companies. He is a past director of the NATA and Corporate Angel Network.
