Airport firm
closing; 135 to
lose jobs

Signature Flight Support cites
'business conditions' as the
reason for its scheduled
Nov. 7 shutdown

By Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin

A major aircraft fueling and ground support business at Honolulu Airport will cease operations Nov. 7, leaving 135 people without jobs.

Signature Flight Support said "business conditions" dictate a shutdown of its Honolulu operations and all jobs are being eliminated, starting with the general manager, according to a statement filed by the company with the state Department of Labor & Industrial Relations.

Employees were told late last week that their jobs would be eliminated, according to the filing.

Employees in Honolulu referred inquiries to company headquarters in Orlando, Fla. A woman answering at that telephone number yesterday said the offices were closing because of Hurricane Floyd.

The company's problem appears to be localized to Honolulu since there were no reports of any cutbacks elsewhere in Signature or at its parent company.

According to company information on file, Signature was founded in 1992, with the merger of two major aviation services businesses, Butler Aviation and Page Avjet Corp.

Overall, Signature has 5,200 employees at 50 facilities in the United States, Mexico, Europe and Asia, according to details on its web site, www.signatureflight.com.

It is owned by BBA Group Plc, a publicly held European diversified engineering, manufacturing and services company. At Honolulu Airport, Signature is one of several companies providing support on the ground to airlines that choose not to have their own employees doing such work as refueling aircraft and moving freight.

Airport officials could not be reached for comment.