MCO Question

av8rmsu

Well-Known Member
I am flying out of Orlando in a couple of weeks and was going to have a friend drop me off in a light Cessna. I was wondering if anyone had some advice about an FBO and also if they charge any big landing fees. Any advice would be helpful.

Thanks
 
MCO has two FBOs - Galaxy and Signature (The Borg). Do NOT go to Signature with a small aircraft - you will pay nearly $100 for ramp fees. Galaxy is more reasonable but they have a ramp fee.

Or do you mean flying in to Orlando Exec? KORL?

MCO is not to friendly to small aircraft, so you may want to consider ORL.

Jet Center does not charge any ramp fees.

Showalter charges a minor ramp fee which is waived with any fuel purchase.

Be prepared to be gouged for fuel. Last I knew it was about $3.30/gal avgas.

Showalter has excellent line service.

Jet Center is getting better. There are some terrific people at both places.

Say hi to Jenny, Kim and Amanda at Showalter, and Kelly, Rachel, and Ricky at Jet Center.
 
I would HIGHLY suggest flying into ORL instead of MCO. JT is right about Signature and the airport not being to friendly with light a/c. About the lightest thing I've EVER see fly in (other than myself shooting an ILS at 12:30 am in a 172) is a King Air. With landing fees and ramp fees, if you were flying OUT of MCO, it might be cheaper to land at ORL and then take a cab.....

If you do wind up at MCO and get over to the Southwest Airlines side, let me know.
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Defintely go to KORL. KMCO would cost you more than an airline ticket in there fees. KORL is only a few miles to KMCO and you might be able to one of the vans to drive you down there.
 
I flew into MCO and was charged about $30 for a "handling fee" on top of the fuel purchase....without the fuel it would have been a whole lot more.

If you can get one of the FBO's @ ORL to pick you up it ould be a good way to go.
 
I fly into MCO in a cherokee 180 alot, no problems with anything. I go to Jet center, as long as you go before or after the rush hours you will be fine. If you arrive after 7p.m. or so, and get some gas they won't charge you any extra fees. I get their courtesy car and zip over to the terminal drop/ pick up well within the time limit for the car. I would not waste time going to ORL and driving over, too much time.
 
If you fly into KORL and go to Jet Center I can probably drive you to MCO. I work as a CFI next to Jet Center. PM me the date of your arrival.
 
hey cime I walked in to AOA yesterday and picked up a couple of trinkets from the pilot shop. Were you working? I'd love to say hi to a fellow jet careers member.

By the way, I want to thank Doug for publishing my perspectives article. He found some pretty cool pictures!
 
JT,

I was not in yesterday. The weather was horrible so I cancelled the flights I had. In any case, I am there part of today and then gone on a trip with a student until Thursday. I'll be back full time after that.
 
I'll come in and look for you some time. I often stop in just to say hi to Gabi. I love that German accent
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Getting into MCO is cheap AND easy. There is a designated runway for GA traffic. 18R/36L. Go to Galaxy. It's cheap (free) and they usually let you use their crew car. If there isn't one available ask someone to give you a ride to the terminal. I've been there several times and I've never paid a cent to park and pick up a friend. I do tip the driver when the crew car isn't available.
 
You haven't been to Galaxy in a while. They charge a minimum $25 ramp fee for single engine, and $45 for multi.

ORL is a better bet for smaller aircraft.
 
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You haven't been to Galaxy in a while. They charge a minimum $25 ramp fee for single engine, and $45 for multi.

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I don't know if you would consider 3 weeks "a while". As a matter of fact, I just got off the phone with them because I wanted to make sure my information was current and correct. No ramp fees for a single or light twin if you're just going to be there for an hour or so. They encourage you to purchase fuel, but it's not a requirement. They are VERY friendly and I reccomend going there. If you don't believe me, call them at (800) 704-4147.

As far as going there, be prepared for delaying vectors and requests to maintain max forward speed. Bring an airport diagram (on your Jepp or NOS plates) so you can plan where you're going, especially if your used to smaller airports. ATC there is good about giving long landings, intersection departures, etc... so you can cut your taxi times down. I've never had a problem there.
 
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No ramp fees for a single or light twin if you're just going to be there for an hour or so.

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That's probably true, although they recently tried to charge me $84 for being on the ramp one hour and 5 minutes in a baron. They were upset that I didn't buy fuel after the long trip down from ORL.

I will grant you that they are much better than Signature (the Borg) but I think most GA pilots will prefer ORL.
 
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