Fueling America’s Defense, LaSill Aviation Becomes Phillips 66 Aviation Dealer

LaSill Aviation, a fixed base operator (FBO) with a supporting role for one of the nation’s significant military training and deployment bases, has joined the Phillips 66^® Aviation network.

The FBO at Lawton Ft. Sill Regional Airport (LAW), LaSill Aviation handles commercial airlines, private planes and an array of military aircraft. For the Army’s nearby Fort Sill, the FBO refuels everything, including huge Boeing C-17 Globemaster IIIs dispensing heavy metal hardware, wide-body jets hauling troops to war theaters, and choppers ferrying military brass to 75^th Fires Brigade drills.

“Supply was a big point with us when it came to joining Phillips 66,” said Chris Pittman, co-owner of LaSill with Bill Tipton, Pat and Tony Grills.

“They play a critical role supporting Fort Sill with its troop deployments and exercises, and they do that through the Phillips 66 Partners-Into-Plane program,” said Keith Reneau, Director Contract & Military Fuel Sales, ConocoPhillips.

The FBO uses Partners-Into-Plane – the industry's first contract fuel program – to process its Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) transactions.

“Phillips 66 Aviation worked with LaSill, the Defense Logistics Agency and Universal Fuels to develop a creative solution for processing the fuel transactions,” Reneau said.  “It enabled LaSill Aviation to significantly improve their return on this vital segment of their business.”

At Lawton Ft. Sill Airport, the FBO offers a full-range of FBO amenities and services, plus airframe and engine maintenance. But the LaSill group also cleans aircraft at five airports, including Lawton, Dallas-Ft. Worth (DFW), Los Angeles World Airport (LAX), Springfield-Branson National Airport (SGF) and Northwest Arkansas Regional Airport (XNA).

Supporting military flights creates unique challenges for the FBO. About a quarter of LaSill Aviation’s military flights are in the midnight-to-dawn range.

“It’s like a big herd of elephants coming in there, the gray tails, those giant military transports,” says Joe Montgomery, military fuel sales account executive for Phillips 66. “There are lots of details and you’ve got to be able to deal will all sorts of stuff. It’s usually on short notice, often in the middle of the night, and sometimes it’s a pretty big swarm.”

Along with refueling, the FBO’s line crew is often called upon to help with logistics, like the time they packed three military DC-9s with 350 tires each.

For more information about LaSill Aviation, visit www.lasillaviation.com or www.flylawton.org.