Trego Dugan, Grand Island, Nebraska: Aviation Company Capitalizing on European Air Safety Rule

 A Grand Island company is hoping to capitalize on airplane safety changes in Europe just like they are in the United States.

Trego Dugan Aviation is getting certified to put new Federal Aviation Administration required safety equipment in smaller planes.  They say Europe is also requiring planes flying in their skies to have that same equipment.

Trego/Dugan has plans to double, and eventually triple their Grand Island workforce to keep up with the US demand.  Now they say they'll be selling how they do that work to aviation companies in Europe too.

"We come up with the solution to put it in any of these aircraft you see around, and aircraft in the US are the same as you see in Europe, there's different manufacturers and stuff, but we'll have the solution to put it in almost any smaller aircraft in Europe as well," says General Manager Zachary Thompson.

More than 200,000 planes in the US will need to have the new equipment installed by 2020, but Europe's 100,000 general aviation aircraft will need theirs by 2017.

Thompson says they're hoping their solutions will be used in about half of the European planes.  He says it will increase the company's presence abroad.

"We deal with aircraft in other countries, we import aircraft, we export aircraft, we sell to Australia and China, we sell parts to companies in China as well, but this will be a presence to try to be the solution, just like we are in the US, we want to be the solution for ADSB (Automatic Dependent Surveillance Broadcast) in Europe as well," he says.

Trego/Dugan employees will leave this week for an air show in Germany where they will talk with companies about their plan.  They will also meet with Europe's version of the FAA called EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency).  

Story and photo:   http://www.nebraska.tv