AACA Leasing Tutorial

Steve Pavish,  the principal at Northern Horizon Company began his professional experience in Alaskan airports and aviation  after signing on with the former Alaska Division of Aviation in 1973. From 1975 until his retirement from state service in 1999, Steve Pavish supervised the property leasing functions for state airports, including the rural airport system.

From 1985 through retirement, Steve also managed projects to update airport regulations and airport user fees. From retirement until the present time, Steve Pavish operated an aviation consulting firm, providing services to the AACA, air carriers, private pilots, hunting guides, municipalities, Alaska Native corporations, private sector law firms, the Alaska Department of Law, and the Alaska Department of Transportation & Public Facilities (DOT&PF). My principal areas of expertise are airport property leasing, airport operating regulations, and airport land use planning.

Recently, Mr. Pavish published an Aviation Leasing Tutorial.  This is a must read for anyone leasing property on  State of Alaska,  Rural Airport System property.  

The term “rural airport system” encompasses all state-operated airports, except the international airports at Anchorage and Fairbanks. The latter are operated under a separate set of regulations and are outside the scope of this paper.

Leasing state airport land can be a complicated affair, especially for air carriers based in rural locations where law firms and other professional assistance may not be locally available. Navigating the jungle of rural airport leasing agreements, policies, procedures, forms, and regulations, can be a nightmare for anyone trying to make a living in the flying business. Steve decided to write this tutorial in the hope that he might be able to bring some order out of this apparent chaos and make it a little easier for AACA members to coexist with the state’s rural airport land leasing program.