FBO Partners

Name

FBO Partners

Legal name

FBO Partners

Website

https://fbopartners.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aviation Advisory Services

NAICS

All Other Financial Investment Activities (52399)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Aviation Terminals & FBO Services (THABAFAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

M&A / Corporate Finance Finders (Deal Origination) (FSAEAMAD)

Keywords

• Aviation advisory services
• FBO consulting
• Aviation M&A advisory
• Hangar property management
• Aviation business consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Seattle

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Consulting and Advisory Services: FBO Partners generates revenue through professional consulting fees for advisory services including M&A advisory, strategic sales, RFP responses, expert witness testimony, and general business advisory to FBOs, airports, and aviation businesses. The firm charges for custom-tailored solutions.
2. HangarIT™ Software Platform: Revenue from the HangarIT™ cloud-based property management SaaS platform, which is being rebranded as X-1 Property following acquisition by X-1. The platform provides property management capabilities for FBOs and airports.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

FBO Partners is a boutique business advisory firm serving Fixed Base Operators (FBOs), airports, and aviation businesses. The firm delivers consulting services across M&A advisory, strategic sales, government RFP responses, and expert witness testimony, complemented by HangarIT™, a proprietary cloud-based property management platform for aviation hangar owners and operators.

Product overview

FBO Partners is a business aviation consultancy that operates as a unified platform combining proprietary technology with advisory services. The core product is HangarIT™, a trademarked and US Patent Pending cloud-based property management platform for FBOs and airports. This platform is complemented by four consulting service modules: M&A Advisory Services (for mergers, acquisitions, and divestitures), Strategic Sales Services (for fuel and business development), RFP Services (for government procurement responses), and Expert Witness Services (for aviation litigation support). The company was founded in 2014 and was acquired by X-1 in 2025, with HangarIT to be rebranded as X-1 Property.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HangarIT™: A cloud-based property management platform for FBOs, Airports, and other owners and property managers of aircraft hangars. Purpose-built from the ground up by the experts at FBO Partners. Both trademarked and US Patent Pending.

Products and services

• HangarIT™ A cloud-based property management platform for FBOs, Airports, and other owners and property managers of aircraft hangars. It serves as a dynamic, central repository for FBO and airport property management, providing real-time occupancy tracking via QR code scanning, lease management, insurance certificate tracking, and a forthcoming marketplace feature for transient aircraft operators to reserve and pay for overnight hangar space.
• M&A Advisory Services Mergers and acquisitions consulting services for FBOs, family-offices, private equity buyers, and infrastructure firms. Services include commercial advisory, valuation, due diligence, and representation on both buy-side and sell-side transactions.
• Strategic Sales Services Strategic sales and business development consulting for FBOs, including targeted sales campaigns, market research, fuel pricing integration, and fuel reseller management to move marketshare and improve profitability.
• RFP Services Request for Proposals and Request for Qualifications consulting services to help FBOs win government procurement contracts, including strategy development, response preparation, and coordination with architects, construction firms, and other stakeholders.
• Expert Witness Services Legal consultation services for aviation matters, including grant assurance matters, lease and sublease interpretation, and FBO valuation/ownership disputes. FBO Partners provides expert witness testimony for both bench and jury trials.

Quantifiable outcome

• Served as Commercial Advisor on the $4.74B acquisition of Signature Aviation - the largest FBO transaction in history
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• X-1coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2026X-1 acquired FBO Partners and its HangarIT product, announced at NBAA's Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference. The acquisition expands X-1's platform into advisory capabilities, operational strategy, and aviation real estate management. HangarIT is being rebranded as X-1 Property.
• BA GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2026X-1 partnership with BA Group and Aviation Property Network to create an integrated platform combining operational workflows, property management, and a real estate marketplace, with further development planned through 2026.
• Aviation Property NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2026X-1 partnership with BA Group and Aviation Property Network to create an integrated platform combining operational workflows, property management, and a real estate marketplace, with further development planned through 2026.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Avinode Group: Avinode Group operates aviation marketplace and scheduling software (Avinode, SchedAero, CharterX) widely used by FBOs, charter operators, and brokers. FBO Partners' founder Christopher Salley was a founding employee of CharterX and later oversaw 130+ customers at SchedAero, indicating direct product and customer overlap with FBO Partners' HangarIT and advisory offering.

Broad incumbents

• X-1: X-1 is the aviation software platform that acquired FBO Partners and HangarIT (rebranded X-1 Property) in March 2025. As the parent, X-1 is the most direct strategic peer — broader in scope (operations, workflows, marketplace) and now the distribution channel for FBO Partners' advisory and HangarIT products.
• Universal Weather and Aviation: Universal Weather and Aviation provides trip planning, weather, fuel, and FBO-related services to business-aviation operators worldwide. Comparable in serving the FBO ecosystem with value-added services, but at much larger scale and broader geographic footprint than FBO Partners.

Others

• Signature Aviation: Signature Aviation is the world's largest FBO network and was the subject of FBO Partners' marquee $4.74B M&A advisory engagement. Not a direct competitor (FBO Partners is an advisor, not an operator), but operates in the same niche and is a primary client relationship.
• Atlantic Aviation: Atlantic Aviation is one of the largest U.S. FBO networks and a frequent counterparty in FBO M&A transactions. Comparable as an FBO-industry participant and an indirect peer through shared M&A advisory, RFP, and fuel-contract consulting demand.
• Jet Aviation: Jet Aviation operates a global FBO and aircraft management network. Like Signature and Atlantic, it is an FBO industry participant rather than a direct competitor to FBO Partners, but generates adjacent advisory, RFP, and property-management demand relevant to FBO Partners' services.
• Clay Lacy Aviation: Clay Lacy Aviation is a major FBO and charter/MRO operator where FBO Partners' founder Douglas Wilson joined in 2025 as Chief Business Officer of its FBO division. Comparable as an FBO industry participant and now houses FBO Partners' former leadership, making it an adjacent peer rather than a competitor.
• Yardi Systems: Yardi is the dominant commercial property management software platform. Comparable as the incumbent generalist property management technology that HangarIT/X-1 Property must displace at FBO and airport customers for lease, occupancy, and insurance certificate management.
• NBAA (National Business Aviation Association): NBAA is the principal business-aviation industry association and the host of the Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference where FBO Partners' X-1 acquisition was announced. Comparable as the dominant industry convener shaping FBO thought leadership, RFP standards, and regulatory dialogue that FBO Partners participates in.

Emerging players

• Wyvern: Wyvern provides aviation safety auditing, including the IS-BAH FBO auditing standard that FBO Partners' President Christopher Salley helped develop. Comparable as a niche aviation safety/services specialist with overlapping FBO industry relationships and a similar boutique, expertise-led model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about FBO Partners