Editing Fixed-base operator (section)

=== United States ===
Within the United States, the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] (FAA) regulates some activities that may comprise an FBO such as the authorization of repair stations, flight training, and air taxi/air carrier services. However, there are no federal regulatory standards covering all FBOs. The FAA has defined an FBO as "a commercial entity providing aeronautical services such as fueling, maintenance, storage, ground and flight instruction, etc., to the public."<ref>{{cite web|title=FAA Airport Compliance Manual – Order 5190.6B|url=http://www.faa.gov/airports/resources/publications/orders/compliance_5190_6/media/5190_6b.pdf|website=www.faa.gov|publisher=Federal Aviation Administration}}</ref>

The [[United States Department of Transportation]], in cooperation with the FAA, has the duty of establishing minimum standards for commercial aeronautical activities and recommends implementation of these standards by the airport operator or agency, commonly referred to as the airport sponsor.<ref>U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration, "Advisory Circular 150/5190-7: Minimum Standards for Commercial Aeronautical Activities", 28 August 2006, p. 3.</ref> The United States FBO Industry is represented nationally by the [[National Air Transportation Association]] or NATA, but is also partly represented by both the [[National Business Aviation Association]] (NBAA) and the [[Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association]] (AOPA).

The number of U.S. businesses meeting the minimum criteria as an FBO is 3,138 as of April 2009 according to a survey conducted by Aviation Resource Group International (ARGI). The number has decreased since the 2006 survey, which counted 3,346 FBOs.<ref>[http://nata.aero/data/files/NATA%20publications/NATA_factbook.pdf ''General Aviation in the United States: A Fact Book on General Aviation and Aviation Service Businesses''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091229221840/http://www.nata.aero/data/files/NATA%20publications/NATA_factbook.pdf |date=2009-12-29 }} National Air Transportation Association, 2009, p. 10</ref>