Mike Nichols of the NBAA puts his finger on a big air charter guru issue. This story has big implications if the DOT chooses to get excited about this.

Owners that virtually "own" their operators, by virtue of being their biggest customer and asset owner, sets up a dynamic that has the industry in a very precarious place. Most Part 135 management companies exist not because of charter sales, but because of the managed aircraft that they can feed from in terms of profits.

Where does this leave us? Well, it certainly causes one to wonder who really has "Command and Control" no matter what the management agreement says. In fact, a high profile accident indicated that this may have been a contributing factor to the poor decision making by the crew.

The issues here are complex and deep and worthy of future further exploration.