The terminal lobby at Richmond International Airport. (Courtesy Todd Wright/RIC)
The Capital Region Airport Commission on Tuesday voted to approve a resolution to allow Richmond International Airport to enter into negotiations on a five-year lease extension and renovation agreement for Richmond Jet Center’s facilities at 5745 Huntsman Road.
RJC has been a fixed-base operator (FBO) at RIC since the 1940s, providing behind-the-scenes services to airlines like de-icing, belt loading and other maintenance.
RJC’s future at RIC was left up in the air last summer when airport CEO Perry Miller proposed bringing FBO services in-house, a proposal that would also threaten Million Air, another FBO that’s been at RIC for decades. The proposal drew pushback from both RJC and Million Air, as it would have effectively put them out of business.
The resolution passed this week gives RJC and the airport a wider window to negotiate a long-term deal, as RJC’s lease was set to expire on Feb. 1, 2026. The lease extension will run through Jan. 31, 2031.
The resolution was for RJC and its fuel storage sister company Aero Industries and called for RJC to pay annual rent of $582,000 with an annual escalation of around 3%. RJC would also pay 60 equal monthly payments of $2,200 for roof improvements at its facilities. Those payments would be reimbursed by the commission.
The document also briefly mentioned additional, unspecified improvements to RJC’s facility, the cost of which would be borne by RJC but credited toward its rent payments.
The commission approved extending RJC’s lease unanimously and without discussion among commissioners.
Though Million Air’s lease was not on Tuesday’s agenda, an airport spokesman said the commission is having separate discussions for a similar deal with Million Air.
While the full terms would still need to be ironed out, they would each include a five-year lease extension and some form of renovation cost-sharing between the FBOs and RIC.
In a statement after Tuesday’s meeting, RCJ president Michael Clarke said, “We appreciate the commission’s resolution, and we remain hopeful to finalize a lease extension, which will provide the airport, the airlines, general aviation customers and our team with the certainty necessary to maintain and build upon the successes we’ve achieved in recent years.”
RIC also released its latest monthly passenger traffic ahead of Tuesday’s commission meeting, reporting 329,098 passengers in January, up 1.8% from the same period last year. Cargo volume was down for the month by 2.6%.
Later this year RIC will launch its first international flight in over a decade with direct service to Bermuda.
The terminal lobby at Richmond International Airport. (Courtesy Todd Wright/RIC)
The Capital Region Airport Commission on Tuesday voted to approve a resolution to allow Richmond International Airport to enter into negotiations on a five-year lease extension and renovation agreement for Richmond Jet Center’s facilities at 5745 Huntsman Road.
RJC has been a fixed-base operator (FBO) at RIC since the 1940s, providing behind-the-scenes services to airlines like de-icing, belt loading and other maintenance.
RJC’s future at RIC was left up in the air last summer when airport CEO Perry Miller proposed bringing FBO services in-house, a proposal that would also threaten Million Air, another FBO that’s been at RIC for decades. The proposal drew pushback from both RJC and Million Air, as it would have effectively put them out of business.
The resolution passed this week gives RJC and the airport a wider window to negotiate a long-term deal, as RJC’s lease was set to expire on Feb. 1, 2026. The lease extension will run through Jan. 31, 2031.
The resolution was for RJC and its fuel storage sister company Aero Industries and called for RJC to pay annual rent of $582,000 with an annual escalation of around 3%. RJC would also pay 60 equal monthly payments of $2,200 for roof improvements at its facilities. Those payments would be reimbursed by the commission.
The document also briefly mentioned additional, unspecified improvements to RJC’s facility, the cost of which would be borne by RJC but credited toward its rent payments.
The commission approved extending RJC’s lease unanimously and without discussion among commissioners.
Though Million Air’s lease was not on Tuesday’s agenda, an airport spokesman said the commission is having separate discussions for a similar deal with Million Air.
While the full terms would still need to be ironed out, they would each include a five-year lease extension and some form of renovation cost-sharing between the FBOs and RIC.
In a statement after Tuesday’s meeting, RCJ president Michael Clarke said, “We appreciate the commission’s resolution, and we remain hopeful to finalize a lease extension, which will provide the airport, the airlines, general aviation customers and our team with the certainty necessary to maintain and build upon the successes we’ve achieved in recent years.”
RIC also released its latest monthly passenger traffic ahead of Tuesday’s commission meeting, reporting 329,098 passengers in January, up 1.8% from the same period last year. Cargo volume was down for the month by 2.6%.
Later this year RIC will launch its first international flight in over a decade with direct service to Bermuda.
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Excellent update on this situation! Really appreciate the well-explained information. My question is, why was Perry Miller so hell bent on having the airport take over the services these FBOs offer to begin with?! Also, I do believe that the master plan calls for these facilities to move to the north side of the airfield…something this deal does not require. Makes me wonder whether the airport expects to seriously consider adding a second, parallel runway which the RJC facility would impede given its current location. Now, that would be unfortunate.