Spokane Airways, a decades-old business that now provides aircraft maintenance, small charters, and a flight school at the Spokane International Airport, will cease operations at the end of this year, says a member of the family that runs it.

The closure follows a consolidation of services at the airport earlier this year after Ross Spokane LLC, a company started by Denver-based Ross Aviation LLC, acquired XN Air LLC, the airport's fixed-base operator, along with aircraft fueling and commercial aircraft service units of Spokane Airways. However, Spokane Airways continued operating its other divisions that included the flight school. Fixed-base operators, or FBOs, provide support and maintenance services to private and commercial aircraft.

Financial terms of the Ross acquisitions weren't disclosed.

Dick and Margaret Chastek have owned RMA Inc., doing business as Spokane Airways, since 1988, and their sons, John Chastek and Mark Chastek, held roles in the company.

John Chastek, who became XN Air general manager with the Jan. 10 acquisition, says Dick Chastek has continued to operate the remaining Spokane Airways units this year with seven employees but is now retiring. Margaret Chastek retired about five years ago.

Spokane Airways also has been impacted by a downturn in demand for aviation services that's occurred nationwide, he says.

Spokane Airways is operating in about 11,000 square feet of space at the airport that houses its maintenance, flight school, and small charter services, which are services that XN Air doesn't provide. Chastek says XN Air doesn't plan to hire the seven remaining Spokane Airways employees, but likely will use the Spokane Airways space for aircraft storage.

"When the acquisition of XN Air and Spokane Airways (units) took place, Spokane Airways leased back the facilities it was operating with the intent to give it a try to see if the business could be successful," John Chastek says. "It's a combination of the economy, and that my father, who had run Spokane Airways all these years, is retiring, and it's not economically feasible to continue."

He adds, "The plan is the end of the year, to cease offering the flight school and maintenance and charter services. The hope is someone could provide those services going forward, but at this point and time, Spokane Airways is just going to discontinue operations."

Another business at the airport, Aircraft Solutions LLC, offers aircraft maintenance among its services there, Chastek says. Aircraft Solutions took over the former aircraft maintenance arm of XN Air LLC, before the Ross Aviation acquisition, he says.

Until recent years, Spokane Airways had operated as the airport's FBO with a variety of aircraft services, with roots back to the 1930s at Felts Field. As recently as around seven years ago, it had up to 120 employees, the peak of its employment, Chastek says.

With the Ross Aviation acquisition, Spokane Airways' fueling and cargo-handling services were merged into Ross Spokane LLC, doing business as XN Air. About 60 Spokane Airways employees were hired by XN Air as part of that acquisition, Chastek says.

Overall, XN Air currently has 27 full-time and 47 part-time employees. "In the merger, most of Spokane Airways and XN Air's employees were hired," Chastek adds.

Early this year, the Spokane Airport Board approved the transfer of long-term leases held by XN Air LLC and Spokane Airways to Ross. XN Air primarily provides general aviation fuel, commercial airline fueling, hangar rental, and cargo and commercial ground handling services. It leases about 55,000 square feet of buildings at the airport, and about 120,000 square feet of ramp space, Chastek says.

Chastek says his brother, Mark, is involved mainly with Spokane Airways' ground support equipment maintenance work. That is a small but necessary service at the airport that is expected to continue being offered in some form, perhaps still under the Spokane Airways name, he adds.

"There are just a few customers, but that is a service that's necessary at the airport and it will likely continue," he says. "We haven't worked out the details on the ground support equipment."

He adds that the business decision to cease Spokane Airways' main operation is bittersweet, because of its history with "wonderful employees and customers" over more than 20 years.

"It's with a lot of sadness that we'll not continue to serve that market," Chastek says, adding that while his primary focus has been with XN Air this past year, he continued in an advisory role with Spokane Airways.

"Customers are important, and we have tried to help them transition smoothly," he says. "We helped point them toward other avenues and sources for their needs, including Aircraft Solutions."

He adds, "On a national basis, there are pockets of recovery in the aviation industry, and we're looking for the industry to grow in Washington state. With all the consolidation (in Spokane), it will enable the businesses to be successful as the economy comes back."

He says the flight-training portion of Spokane Airways remained fairly steady, and that while he isn't aware of another business at the airport that's stepping into that role, he expects another operator to fill in the gap left behind by Spokane Airways' departure.

"There's a real need for that," he says. "I think there will be a big need in the future, and someone will fill the void, I believe."

Chastek adds that Ross Aviation came into Spokane, which is a relatively small market, and took "two otherwise struggling businesses and consolidated it into one business that's more appropriately staged for the market."

Jeff Ross, president and CEO of Ross Aviation, says that it decided on the acquisition in Spokane the end of last year because the two businesses became available to buy, and services at the airport could be consolidated. Founded in 2004, Ross Aviation owns and operates a portfolio of 15 locally-managed FBO airport operations in the U.S, information on its website says.

"The (Spokane) market, we felt, was too small to support two FBOs," Ross says. "It was the opportunity to buy both of them."

After consolidating services in Spokane, Ross says, Spokane Airways' sought to continue operating in its facilities through the end of 2012 to provide a few remaining services that XN Air doesn't offer.

He says XN Air's two primary focuses in Spokane are aircraft refueling and hangar rental services. Additionally, he says Ross Aviation is seeking to lease, for additional aircraft storage space, a portion of a hangar that the airport is renovating near XN Air's operations.

In recent years, Spokane Airways had a public battle with the airport over its facilities there as part of constructing a new control tower that was completed in 2007. In June 2010, the Spokane City Council unanimously approved a $1.8 million settlement with the owners of Spokane Airways.

The action by the city, which co-owns the airport with Spokane County, followed litigation filed by RMA that stemmed from the airport's condemnation of buildings Spokane Airways had occupied to meet line-of-sight requirements for the tower.

The suit filed by RMA accused SIA and its board of forcing Spokane Airways to vacate several buildings that were later demolished without paying for the company to relocate or providing replacement buildings.