Thor Einarson and his family have endured all sorts of economic ups and downs since Einarson Flying Service was founded at Falls International Airport in International Falls, Minn., more than half a century ago. Although this recession is proving to be enormously challenging, for an airport that far north winter weather is a constant–and more pressing–battle. During this past winter, for example, for three days in a row the outside air temperature hovered at -41 degrees F. “We had an unusual winter,” said Einarson, the third-generation owner-operator of the FBO. “Record cold, record snow, record rain. We’re the icebox of the nation.” However, that weather has its advantages.

Two Einarson brothers, Francis (Thor’s father) and James, started the FBO in 1948. Francis took his first airplane ride in 1939, then joined the U.S. Army in World War II. After the war, Francis learned to fly and then bought the FBO at Falls International Airport. Thor, now 47, was 11 years old when he tried his hand at the controls, bolstered by padding made of wood blocks and boat cushions that his father fashioned so the young boy could reach the controls of one of the FBO’s Cessna 150s. Thor and later his wife and FBO co-owner Karina stayed with the FBO and also took over as managers of the airport, while his brother worked his way up the airline ladder, eventually flying as a captain for Mesaba Airlines.

In addition to the FBO, Einarson’s father built a busy airplane medevac service, often flying patients to Canada, which didn’t have indigenous medevac operators at the time. With most hospitals now contracting with helicopter medevac operators, the business opportunities for the fixed-wing medevac services that Einarson offered have diminished. “That whole thing has changed,” Einarson said.

A Beneficial Location
This year the Einarson family finds itself facing an unusually protracted and deepening recession, but thankfully there are advantages to owning an FBO on
an isolated airport that is a key part of the local transportation infrastructure. International Falls, like many northern U.S. airports, is ideally situated as a refueling stop for business jet traffic inbound from Europe. Customs and immigration clearance is available 24/7, and many travelers take advantage of the ability to clear near the border, both inbound from Europe and outbound toward Europe from destinations in the southwestern U.S. “One thing that we capitalize on,” Einarson said, “is the Great Circle route. We line up very well, just about dead center, for aircraft coming from Europe. That’s really our life’s blood for the FBO.”

Falls International–300 miles from Minneapolis–is the nearest international airport to the city and far enough away that travelers prefer to fly one of the airlines serving the airport rather than drive to Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport. Falls International has a 7,400-foot ILS-served main runway and just the one FBO. As airport manager, Einarson is responsible for every aspect of operating the airport, including snow removal, grounds care and grass mowing, maintenance of the navaids and runway lights and staffing and maintaining airport rescue vehicles. “We do anything under the umbrella,” he said.

Einarson Flying Service’s maintenance shop offers service for general aviation customers as well as local airlines. The FBO used to operate a charter division, which had 13 aircraft at its peak, but that business dropped off after airline deregulation took hold and small airlines saw the opportunity to funnel traffic to Minneapolis-St. Paul.

In an area where winter means frigid weather, the 90/90 rule takes precedence. This means, Einarson explained, “that 90 percent of the revenue is generated 90 days of the year.” The busy months are June, July and August, when many travelers spend time at nearby Voyageurs National Park. At this year’s NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers show, Einarson Aviation’s booth prize was a one-week, six-person house-boating trip at the park.

Einarson Flying Service does generate additional revenue during the winter by offering cold-weather testing services to aviation manufacturers, something the company has been doing for the past 50 years. “With the severe cold temperatures we can generate,” Einarson said, “it’s a perfect mix for a lot of the aircraft manufacturers.” This past winter, three companies took advantage of the International Falls weather to test engines, flight controls and icing systems.

Paradoxically, the winter months are also busy, even though business drops off, because more workers are needed for snow removal and ice control. “It takes five times the manpower to operate in the winter versus the summer,” he said. In
the summer, the airport’s grounds and navaids and facilities need to be maintained, but there is not the same sense of urgency. “You can let the grass grow, but you can’t let the snow or ice accumulate.”

Flight departments are cutting back on travel, Einarson noted. “We have clearly seen a reduction in sales and in traffic. Probably a 30- to 35-percent reduction is a fair number.” Record high prices for jet-A and avgas last year didn’t help, and “about the time we thought we had seen the highs, it would jump 10 to 15 cents, on what seemed like almost a daily basis.”

There is a bright spot, and that is Einarson’s forecast of activity based on reservations at Canadian outdoor fishing camps. “Thankfully, we’re not looking at that serious a reduction compared with last year,” he said. “We’re hoping those numbers reflect the amount of traffic we’ll be expecting during our busy season.”
Einarson is proud of his company’s contributions to the Wounded Warrior Project, a charity that provides aid to injured servicemen and -women. A portion of every fuel sale is donated to the charity, according to Einarson.

As an example of the kind of personal service that Einarson Flying Service provides, Thor recalled that one time he and Karina knew that an arriving jet carried the owner’s three cats. They drove to a pet store and bought three cat toys and three tins of quality cat food and delivered those along with the catering when the jet pulled up at the FBO. “He was so appreciative,” Einarson recalled, “that he gave us a loaf of his wife’s prized homemade Irish bread. We have a high percentage of repeat business because we try hard to give the customer the best service possible.

“We’ve been fortunate,” he concluded. “We haven’t had any layoffs. We have a great team working with us, and I’m proud of my team. They realize the economic situation, and there haven’t been any complaints.”