The author's plane gets ready to leave Signature Tampa for the last time. [Courtesy: Dick Karl]
Key Takeaways:
The author maintained a stable hangar space at Tampa International Airport for nearly 40 years, navigating various FBO changes and enduring a common anxiety among aircraft owners about hangar availability.
Despite this long tenure and personal connections, the author was abruptly forced out by Signature Flight Support due to a preference for larger, more profitable jets.
The relocation to a new, more affordable airport was emotionally distressing, primarily due to the loss of long-standing relationships and sense of community with the former FBO's linemen.
Our last flight out of Tampa International Airport was short.
After being based at KTPA for 38 years, we were nudged out to a nontowered reliever airport, KVDF, known as Tampa Executive Airport. The flight took six minutes to fly but has taken months to reconcile.
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Dick Karl is a cancer surgeon who appreciates the beauty and science involved in both surgery and flying. Dick’s monthly Gear Up celebrates the human side of flying. He writes about his enthusiasm for both the machines and the people who fly and maintain them.
