Idaho’s Stout Flying Service bows out after 30 years

Stout Flying Service (Lewiston) has announced via its Facebook page that it has closed its doors after the business was acquired by start-up Frontier Aviation and Jet Center. “Stout Flying Service is becoming Frontier Air and Jet Center. Thirty years holds a lot of memories, a lot of customers, a lot of friendships, and a lot of loyalties. We appreciate all of those more than any of you will ever know,” the company said on its Facebook page. The Idaho-based fixed base operator was family-owned and operated. At the time of its closure, it was operating a six-passenger Commander 690A and an Ayers Thrush crop spraying aircraft, according to the company website. Stout Flying Service sold to Frontier Aviation and Jet Center as part of an agreement hammered out in mediation with Lewiston that gave Stout Flying Service four months to sell or vacate its airport premises, reported The Lewiston Tribune. Neither side had admitted doing anything wrong in the agreement that stated Stout Flying Service was issued a notice of default in May 2020 for failing to carry lease-required liability and property damage insurance that met LWS’s minimum standards. As part of the compromise, Stout Flying Service owner Ralph Stout will stay on as chief pilot under the new ownership. The dispute generated substantial community support for the Stouts who felt the family-run firm had been unfairly treated by the airport. According to a letter by Stout’s daughter, Kim Pedersen, to the Lewiston City Council in July 2020, “the issue of liability insurance had been rectified as soon as the error was discovered”. According to airport board meeting minutes, the documentation offered by the Stouts did not show coverage for January 1, 2020, to May 22, 2020. The operator had claimed its insurance had lapsed because its insurance company had been unavailable during the COVID-19 lockdown. Frontier Aviation and Jet Center owner Matthew Mosman confirmed he had acquired Stout Flying Service as a way to expand after 10 years doing contracted aerial applications. In the future, the venture might seek permission for other types of business, such as instructing pilots or running charter flights, Mosman said. At a board meeting in January 2021, airport Director Michael Isaacs confirmed Frontier Aviation and Jet Center were cleared to take over the Stout Flying Service lease and would be allowed to operate agricultural aircraft and sell fuel. During that meeting, the board had approved reassigning the lease for Stout Flying Service to new owner Frontier Aviation and Jet Center, a final step in ending the disagreement between the board and Stout Flying Service.