CONGRATULATIONS
" Top 40 Under 40"
Angie Johnson
Sales Executive FBO and Airport Solution Sales, World Fuel ServicesAngie Johnson never planned a career in aviation. She was working in the automotive industry when a friend who worked in line service suggested she consider a job at Elliott Aviation. Expanding her knowledge within Elliott Aviation, Johnson built long-term customer relationships and assisted with the planning and execution of large events. Connections at NBAA’s Schedulers and Dispatchers Conference led her to her current position at World Fuel Services. She is very active within her local aviation community as a volunteer with the Minnesota Business Aviation Association and helped launch its YoPro committee to increase engagement and expand outreach to new business aviation professionals. She also serves on the board of her local Women in Aviation Chapter as the event coordinator.
Johnson says the people make the industry. “Despite the widespread nature of business aviation, it remains a tight-knit community. People are always willing to help, whether you’re looking for a new opportunity or learning new skills.”
Moorhead lands $5B sustainable jet fuel plant and its 650 jobs
The facility will convert agriculture and timber waste into jet fuel.
Minnesota Star Tribune by Christopher Vondracek - November 4, 2024
Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport and Minnesota have high aspirations for using sustainable airline fuel. (Richard Tsong-Taatarii/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
A $5 billion facility to manufacture jet fuel for airplanes is coming to Moorhead.
DG Fuels, a Washington D.C., based energy company, announced it’s putting a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant in Clay County, bringing 650 jobs to northwestern Minnesota’s border with North Dakota.
The facility, which expects to start production in 2030, will convert agriculture and timber waste into jet fuel, according to a statement from Greater MSP, a Twin Cities-based regional development organization.
“We not only want to lead the world in de-carbonizing air travel” at Minnesota-St. Paul International Airport, said Greater MSP CEO Peter Frosch. “But we want to produce that SAF in Minnesota.”
The selection of Moorhead, Frosch said, was evidence of the concerted push from the Minnesota SAF Hub — which includes government, universities, nonprofits and companies, including Bank of America and Delta Air Lines — to ramp up production of SAF in Minnesota.
The project is also a win for Moorhead.
“With the largest shovel-ready industrial site in the state of Minnesota, we are excited and prepared to compete on the national stage for this economic development opportunity,” said Moorhead Mayor Shelly Carlson in a statement.
While SAF can be produced from biomass streams, including corn stover, industry experts look to perennial crops as well, such as camelina and other oilseeds, as possible sources for feedstocks.
“We have a diverse array of feedstocks [in Minnesota],” said Andrea Vaubel, deputy commissioner at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. “We’re thrilled for the farmers in the Red River Valley.”
DG Fuels did not respond to a request for an interview. But the facility will produce 193 million gallons of SAF per year and take four years to construct, according to a release from the company. The company says it expects the investment will produce $50 billion in economic activity for the state over the next three decades.
Industry officials say Minnesota has worked to position itself as a SAF-friendly state. In 2023, Gov. Tim Walz and the Legislature passed a tax credit awarding a company $1.50 for every gallon of SAF produced.
In 2023, the U.S. produced fewer than 25 million gallons of SAF. But production of the sustainable fuel is expected to ramp up. A number of airlines, including Delta, have publicly committed to dropping their carbon footprint. Researchers estimate air travel contributes just below 3% annually to global greenhouse gases.
DG Fuels in April announced it is building a 180 million-gallon-a-year plant in Louisiana. That facility will convert waste from sugar cane to SAF.
In September, the first SAF-powered commercial jet to fly from MSP completed a flight to LaGuardia Airport in New York.
MBAA Searching for New Board Members & Executive Director
The MBAA Board of Directors sent a request to all current MBAA members soliciting names to replace current MBAA Board members whose term on the Board expires on 31 December 2024. The Board is looking to replace the expiring terms of Member at Large Nate Bruss and board officer Dan Henchal, who was elected as Treasurer, served as Vice President, then President, and now serves as the Immediate Past President.
Interested individuals are asked to submit their name with a brief one page bio and the reason they wish to serve on the Board of Directors.
A team of current MBAA members will review each submission and forward two names to the current Board. The Board will review the nominees and submit their names for election by the membership. The election is held the first week of November.
Send applications or direct any questions to:
Minnesota Aviation Degree Loan Repayment Program
The 2024 application for the Minnesota Aviation Degree Loan Repayment Program is available until the October 31st Deadline.
Applicants can find more program information on the program webpage at:
Help Stop Harmful Tax Proposals
Please tell Congress TODAY to stand up for business aviation and the economy!
If you weren’t paying careful attention, you may have missed it in his State of the Union address, President Biden referenced troubling new tax proposals for business aviation.
The president has followed through on those comments with onerous proposals in his annual budget plan that single out the industry for punitive tax treatment, including a five-fold fuel tax increase on business aviation, to $1.06 per gallon, and a change to the depreciation schedule for a purchased business aircraft, from 5 years to 7 years.
The budget proposal follows a recent plan unveiled by the IRS for audits on companies using business aircraft, to ensure that “everyone is playing by the same rules.”
NBAA and MBAA are always working for you. As the Biden administration ramps up its rhetoric and regulatory focus on business aviation, the associations have been quick to push back. But there is power in numbers and we need Congress to hear your voice today!
Go to the NBAA website via the following link or call your member of Congress and both Minnesota Senators TODAY to urge Congress to oppose anti-business aviation tax policies from the administration. Remind Congress that business aviation powers the economy with 1.2 million jobs and $250 billion in economic activity each year.
Proposed Schedule of Events for 2024
DATE EVENT TIME LOCATION 22-24 OCT NBAA - BACE All Day Las Vegas Convention Center ~ 13 NOV/?DEC YoPro Event TBD TBD 4 DEC Annual Membership Meeting 1100-1400 Embassy Suites, 2800 American Blvd
Bloomington, MN 55431
MN Aviation events hosted by other aviation organizations.
MBAA members are encouraged to participate and support.
MBAA events are normally scheduled on the second Wednesday of the Month. Unless confirmed, events scheduled are based on experience and discussions with sponsors. Once confirmed, event details are posted in the EVENTS tab. Send suggestions for a program, speaker, vendor, or topic to ADMIN@mbaa-mn.org
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