FAA rule allows move, but timing raises fairness questions for long-time partner Signature Aviation
By HCA Staff Report – November 2025
EAGLE — A mid-process change to Eagle County’s airport development solicitation effectively barred Signature Aviation, the sole fixed-base operator (FBO) at Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE), from competing for a 17-acre aviation business-park lease.
County officials invoked a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) policy that permits airports to exclude an incumbent operator to “increase competition,” but the rule was added after the county’s Request for Proposals (RFP) was first released — the same day as the project’s mandatory pre-proposal meeting.
A partner of decades learns it can’t compete
The original RFP, issued September 9–10, 2025, invited “aviation-related businesses” to propose a long-term ground lease and construction plan for new hangars and service facilities on EGE’s north side.
Nothing in that first document restricted current on-airport tenants from bidding, and industry sources say Signature Aviation began preparing a proposal immediately.
Signature, which purchased the Vail Valley Jet Center in 2021, has operated the airport’s sole full-service FBO for more than two decades. The company manages refueling, maintenance, de-icing, and passenger services for corporate and charter traffic—the lifeblood of Eagle County’s winter resort economy.
“We were asked for a letter of support, we wrote one, and we still support the project,” Senior Vice President Jim Hopkins told commissioners at their October 28 meeting. “It is a huge opportunity for this community. But three weeks into the process, right before the pre-conference, we were excluded from consideration.”
Addendum 1 changes the rules
On October 2 — the very morning of the pre-proposal meeting — the county issued Addendum 1.
It inserted a new section (III-j) stating:
“Proposals from aviation-related service providers with existing operations at the Eagle County Regional Airport … are ineligible for award under this RFP. Any proposal submitted by such a provider will not be considered and will be rejected.”
The addendum cited FAA Order 5190.6B § 8.7(b), which affirms that an airport sponsor “may exclude an incumbent on-airport service provider … based on the sponsor’s desire to increase competition.”
That one sentence turned the RFP into a contest only for newcomers, disqualifying Signature from day one of the formal process.
The official Exhibit B sign-in sheet shows that several Signature Aviation personnel — including Bridget Ganchar, Keila Sanchez, Liz Devaney, Ben Mohler, Alicia Harvey, and Aaron Kunz — attended the October 2 meeting, but Hopkins’ name does not appear.
County rationale: competition and transparency
In Addendum 1 and Addendum 2 (issued Oct. 15), the county reiterated that its goal was to “provide opportunities for increased competition in the provision of aviation-related businesses and facilities at the airport and to establish a new business relationship that is mutually beneficial … to the successful proposer.”
The FAA has long encouraged airports with a single FBO to seek a second operator when expansion opportunities arise, to avoid even the appearance of an exclusive-rights situation.
County officials appear to have relied on that precedent.
But the way the change was timed — mid-process, and without explicit notice before the mandatory meeting — has drawn questions about procedural fairness.
The business-park project
The Aviation Business Park Development Land Lease covers roughly 17 acres north of Taxiway B.
The county seeks a long-term lessee to build and operate hangars or other aeronautical facilities, with utilities provided via future extensions.
The project is considered foundational to EGE’s expansion plan, which also contemplates a potential U.S. Customs and Border Protection international terminal to handle direct charter and private international flights.
RFP proposals are due November 7, 2025, with selection targeted for December 5 and contract execution projected for February 2026.
According to Addendum 2, the county confirmed that the parcel boundaries will remain unaffected by Taxiway B construction and that more than 100,000 cubic yards of fill material will be available to the selected developer at no charge.
Who attended
The sign-in sheet from the October 2 meeting lists nearly 50 participants representing more than two dozen organizations, including:
- Sheltair Aviation, Atlantic Aviation, Skyservice, Kuhn Aviation, Freeman Holdings, Cutter Aviation, Aero Center, Vantage Aviation, BA Group, AMCG Aero
- Hensel Phelps, WCG Construction, Sacred Ground Excavation
- Woolpert (Jviation), Benesch, David Evans & Associates, LJA Engineering, OZ Architecture, TEC-NIC Design Build
As of publication, the county has not released the list of submitted proposals, and no bidder has publicly confirmed a submission.
The next likely disclosure will appear in December Board of County Commissioners or Eagle County Air Terminal Corporation (ECAT) agendas once staff complete evaluations.
Signature’s response
Hopkins told commissioners on October 28 that Signature had supported the concept of an international terminal, even providing a letter of endorsement two years earlier.
However, the company learned it would need to give up “20 to 25 percent of our leasehold” to make room for the project.
“We were told it would have to go to RFP,” Hopkins said. “We reluctantly surrendered to that, hired engineers and designers, came up with a huge array of plans. Then we were excluded from the process. … This is not a legal matter; this is a matter of lost opportunity.”
Hopkins estimated that the county has already invested about $2 million in the project and urged officials to reopen direct communication rather than rely solely on attorneys.
Legal footing vs. perception
By citing FAA Order 5190.6B, the county placed itself on solid regulatory ground: the FAA explicitly allows airports to bar an incumbent FBO when creating new opportunities.
Yet the perception problem remains: the change occurred after the RFP had been issued, without early notice to parties already preparing bids.
That tension — between legal compliance and public trust — is at the heart of the story now unfolding at Eagle County Regional Airport.
What happens next
County staff will review proposals through late November.
If the schedule in the RFP holds, a short-list recommendation could appear before the Board of County Commissioners or the Eagle County Air Terminal Corporation in mid-December, followed by negotiation of a long-term ground lease early next year.
For now, Signature Aviation remains the airport’s only on-field operator — but no longer a contender in the county’s largest new aviation development.
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