Trouble at the Airport?

Gravity asserts itself…

Perhaps. Big trouble. The City is being sued by a former tenant – Air Combat USA – whose owner is claiming the Airport Director conspired to keep him from renewing his lease option for another thirty years, and thus depriving him of the revenue and profit therefrom.

Here’s the complaint:

Air Combat USA vs City of Fullerton Complaint

$50,000,000 is a lot of dough, so we’ll have to watch this one. Is there any validity to the complaint? I don’t know. A lot of facts are asserted that may be very hard for the plaintiff to prove even if they are true. Some of the allegations have the ring of truth.

Unfortunately for the taxpayers, Fullerton city employees have a pretty poor track record when it come to mismanaging facilities and interfering with people they don’t care for via restraint of trade practices. And just because Redevelopment is sort of gone doesn’t mean the bureaucratic lust to play Monopoly is gone with it.

Getting prepared for takeoff…

Meantime, other airport lessees have been heard complaining about a tenant called Hangar 21 that is operating a big party space out of a hangar – a non-aviation use that may not be kosher for a general aviation airport, and that might therefore have Federal funding implications for the City.

86 Replies to “Trouble at the Airport?”

  1. Wait a minute — I thought Fullerton city employees had a GREAT track record when it come to mismanaging facilities and interfering with people they don’t care for!

    1. Is there something specific you are referring to?

      According to the lawsuit, Air Combat had the right to exercise an option; the owner claims that opportunity was effectively denied him as the Airport Director stalled and misled him.

      1. The owner had the opportunity to renew the list, but the deadline to renew cams and went. He was then put on a month to month lease while the location went out to bid. He was able to bid for the location at that point like everyone else but his proposal was not selected. That was his fault for not renewing before the lease was up. He then proceeded to tear the building apart and cause major damage when he was finally evicted. He is a crazy unsafe person. The city made the right choice to select a new tenet for that location.

        1. That’s not the story the lawsuit describes. It’s pretty hard to imagine getting the terms of your lease wrong – no matter how dumb you are.

          1. Trust me, he’s that dumb.

            But if it makes you feel better you can read the lease yourself. It’s publicly available and is explicit in describing the process and dates for exercising the lease extension.

            Even if everything he accuses the airport manager of doing were true (it’s not), it wouldn’t matter. The manager could have lied straight to his face about the dates and it wouldn’t change the fact that Blackstone Jr had a copy of his own lease and is expected to know the terms. That’s not a conspiracy, that’s how leases and contracts work.

            Blackstone Jr can vomit all the fantastic and delusional tales of collusion and shady dealings of corrupt politicians and nefarious goings on…but the bottom line is he screwed up his lease option and has no one to blame for being friendless, family-less, and hangarless but himself.

        2. The City continues to make bad choices. Apparently you have no idea about any of the circumstances that lead to this situation. The swamp in Fullerton needs to be drained just like in D.C.

    2. sadly when it will be all over Brandon and Rob will most likely be butt buddies in jail,,,,and the city will be out a lot of money

    1. Egad. The loonies are congregating. Asking Flat Earth and Flat Head for assistance is like asking Typhoid Mary to help out in the kitchen. That’s just not gonna turn out well for Mr. Air Combat.

    2. wonder how you can explain the trailer now blocking that fire exit,,can you say fire code violations? and selective enforcement?? I see a civil rights problem

  2. It says they’re seeking over $500,000,000, not fifty million. Gee that’s kind of ridiculous. Half a billion.

    1. He’s going after the same part of $50,000,000 in three different ways, plus ancillary costs. Nobody is going to give that guy $450,000,000 for punitive damages.

    2. I don’t think it’s a money thing …like with me and what happened to me? civil rights violations not to exclude the laws of the state and county being ignored….will Brandon and Rob be butt buddies in jail???

  3. 36 years in same place then suddenly the tenant chose not to renew his lease at Fullerton Airport? I have heard rumors that city o Fullerton would like to unload its responsibility for their airport. What would replace this airport? High density, high end development?

    1. The current owner as of 2016 is not the original owner from the past 30 years. This is the son who fired all staff who had been running it after his father passed away. Lies were told in court for him to gain access to the company. He was not part of Air Combat as he claims. The father and son relationship was not a healthy one. This is his way of getting back at his dad by destroying his company.

        1. It is true, and it’s relevant to the public discussion about the lawsuit.

          Jr is deceitful when he claims “*we* have been here 30+ years.” His father built that business, with the help of family and a special group of dedicated, passionate employees. Jr was nothing but a thorn and a financial drain on the business that was universally disliked (including his own father.)

          There *was* fraud involved in his hostile takeover of the company, and other than the family members he fired within hours of the judgement, 100% of the rest of the employees quit en mass the next day (over 20 people!) [I’m neither family nor one of the 20+ but consider them all outstanding people.]

          Jr is not telling the truth about his role, and he’s pretending his abusive behavior towards his father was some kind of co-creative business relationship. The fact is his father didn’t want him to have the business and he ran it into the ground within months if taking over.

          Whatever fond memories Fullerton residents may have of Air Combat exist from when his father ran it. Not a single person that worked there when the father owned it still work there.

          People need to know that before they shed a single tear for “poor little Jr” and his totally made-up story about being “kicked out.”

          1. Incorrect. The heir’s relationship with his employees has ZERO to do with the allegations described in the lawsuit against the City. Did you bother reading it?

            Another internet lawyer opines. Yuk, yuk.

            1. Never said it did. In fact the very first sentence in my post noted “it’s relevant to the public discussion about the lawsuit.”

              Did you even bother reading it?

              Another illiterate lawyer opines.

              1. So if you want to have a “public discussion” about the lawsuit by talking about things that are immaterial to the lawsuit, then you just go right ahead talking to yourself, Perry Mason.

                1. Maybe they didn’t teach this to you in lawyer school, but there is a difference between a public discussion about litigants and the history of the parties involved in a lawsuit, and the actual litigation of said case.

                  But you want to engage in a public discussion about a lawsuit on a message board by saying we can only discuss items that you think are relevant to the court? You’re not just a lawyer, you’re a judge, too!!! Your Honor, what topics or information are we allowed to share with the message board jury?

                  And you can call me Perry mason all you want, but I’m not the one pretending to be a lawyer.

                2. Uh huh, you go with that. Gossip about the guy’s business has nothing to do with the lawsuit. You want to make Sims look good by making the other guy look bad. Maybe he is a bad person. Maybe he beats his wife and kids. Maybe Sims does, too. Maybe you do.

                  According to your philosophy we can now talk about that because, ya know, anything can be discussed on a “public board.”

          2. Bottom line Mike Senior left the Company to his kids. He knew the trust would hold. Everybody that worked for Air Combat (family members girlfriend) were highly over paid for what they did and Sr. used his retirement to fund the business. When he died and there was no more retirement to fund the company because the retirement money went to his wife there needed to be changes in the day to day operation and an adjustment in payroll was necessary. No body liked that. Mike Sr. wanted everybody to like him and he accomplished that. Everybody was taken care of at his expense. Now they have to do it on their own.

            1. If Mike Sr. was the one funding Air Combat, then why does Air Combat owe multiple family members over $300,000 from investments that they all made to keep the company running? Mike Sr kept borrowing money. Do you really want to go down this path publically?

      1. He destroyed it (the business) before the city evicted him. It’s never his fault. He will always find someone else to blame.

      2. have you ever seen what they done to the aircraft ???? as I see it through the maintenance and history of the actual aircraft ,,the past employees screwed over the father ,those supervisors and A&Ps should be sanctioned ,retrained or have their licenses taken away…

    1. you must be a Brandon butt buddy ?the grounding of the fleet saved lives of the pilot and customers..as for misfavors? put it right where it belongs the Larry, Brandon and the useful idiot??? I vote for jail time for Brandon

    1. Right.

      Hate to break it to you, but having a tour business does not magically make everything you do with the hangar aviation related use.

      Having events with booze a hundred feet from the runway and displacing aviation storage with bridal suites? I’m guessing the FAA hasn’t signed off on that.

      Maybe they have. Who knows?

      Who cares?

        1. Most of it.

          Renting hangar space to a non-aviation user is illegal when an aviation user is available.

          Assuming there isn’t a wait list, the FAA must approve all non-aviation use.

          I’ll go out on a limb and guess Hangar 21’s Runway Boozing and Light Show isn’t FAA approved.

            1. Both.

              The city is breaking the law. The city is risking federal payments to the airport, including past payment. The city is at risk of being sued by the FAA for specific performance of it’s contractual obligations with the FAA. The city may also be liable for damages incurred by aviation firms denied access to hangars or facilities leased to non-aviation users, and the city may also be liable for damages incurred to business booted from the airport after the FAA cleans house.

              But hey, they’re just laws. Optional, right?

              1. “But hey, they’re just laws. Optional, right?”

                The city seems to think so. After all, look at how the city has ignored it’s contract with the Army Corp of Engineers regarding the Brea Dam property. They simply do as they wish, feeling that they won’t get caught. Or, to give they city officials who allow all this to happen the benefit of the doubt, maybe they are simply incompetent, just don’t know any better, and are are doing their best. Except in the case of Brea Dam, they know exactly what they are doing and don’t care.

          1. Wrong. Sims runs an aviation business so there are no FAA issues with his move to Balckstone’s hangar.. Aviation uses are discretionary to the city . Sims is fine.

            1. Yes, if Sims’ “guests” get high enough, they might even take off.

              Unfortunately, he has been operating an illegal use on P=L zoned land. It’s the law. Of course in Fullerton City hall nobody cares about the law when it’s inconvenient, so Sims is fine.

              He ought to think about coming to work for the Fullerton PD “where lawlessness is not just a motto, it’s a way of life.”

              1. Air Combat USA hosted several large events from the hangar as well. And so has General Aviation. This is not uncommon for commercial hangars to host events like this due to their size.

                1. Then they need a special events permit. And the permanent use is STILL illegal. Per the FMC.

            2. sadly he claims a 135 operation and I have never seen his certificate even after requesting it a while back. I f it is like his trailer blocking the door of the hangar I use, his deportment?and his associations with Brandon he most likely will kill someone with their self made unsafe aviation cultured kingdom ….

            1. Or you could call Fullerton Code Enforcement and report the violation of the municipal code.

        1. with the tactics used and the scofflaw actions of Brandon and his buddies will cause death of many customers those named are professionals unlike Hangar 21 who were labeled as want to bees by a real professional helicopter company employees to me

      1. “Hate to break it to you, but having a [helicopter] tour business does not magically make everything you do with the hangar aviation related use.”

        Hate to break it to you, but if the company is an aviation business, it does. “That’s the law”. Anyone who disputes that doesn’t understand how airports are operated.

        1. So an “aviation business” is in the business of hosting wedding parties? Sorry, major intellectual disconnect. Unless you work for Officer Sims.

    2. Well, you know, I typed in “party venue Fullerton Airport” and that’s what came up number one. I’m not interested in your other enterprises.

      1. I’m confused. Is Sims running a clandestine party venue in violation of the law or is he the number 1 search result for party venues?

        Seems like he’d wanna keep such a crime off the radar?

        Oh well, you supersharp internet lawyers keep typing and uncovering the scandalous world of people having a party in a hangar…

        1. “Is Sims running a clandestine party venue in violation of the law”

          No, he’s running a party venue in violation of the law in plain sight. Because, ya know, this is Fullerton!

      2. Then look up “helicopter tours Fullerton Airport” and see what comes up.

        Geez is this really that difficult….?

        1. Except that hosting wedding receptions and other parites doesn’t have anything to do with helicopter tours, now does it?

          Geez is this really that difficult….?

          1. Ugh WATCH THE COUNCIL MEETING!!! The airport manager and community development manager answered every single one of these questions and addressed every one of these issues. It’s online and free to watch. This is how you become in-fooorrrrrmeed.

            1. So you believe staff reports have anything to do with informing the public? New to Fullerton,are you?

            2. They sure did!

              Would be AWESOME if they flat out lied to council, wouldn’t it?

              Think there will be any consequences? I don’t.

              1. Duh, it’s simple. For example, if I run a business at my residence, or keep livestock at my residence, or build a small shooting range at my residence, it’s a residential use.

          2. sure makes him money for his part 91 LOA lease…cause I never saw his 135 certificate after several requests

    3. The issue is the particular use. Is that party use appropriate per the Fullerton Municipal Code?

      1. No it is not but it will be after the next council meeting. That is what the speakers at the last meeting were referring to. Watch the video.

        1. I was at the 5 Dec meeting my concerns were with aviation safety went on def ears yet Brandon confronted me in the hall afterwards with the police chief in tow…can you say intimidation and assault under color of authority?

          they stink more than a pig farm….and the harassment and intimidation continues can you say civil rights violation beyond the laws already broken???

    4. could you remove that trailer from the door way? I asked too many times for your fire code violation..(if this was twenty years ago it would have been found in the middle of the ramp tires slashed and torched already)

    1. the think tank saw only positives for the government so they let it happen ( Clinton’s executive order prohibiting the CIA and FBI from sharing information) after the garage bombing it was only a matter of time..

  4. AIR COMBAT USA WINS CIVIL LAWSUIT AGAINST THE CITY OF FULLERTON

    $1.2M IN DAMAGES HAVE BEEN AWARDED TO AIR COMBAT USA

    UNANIMOUS JURY VERDICT [9/9]

    The City of Fullerton, by the actions of its Airport Manager, Brendan O’Reilly, was found to have purposely, by anticipatory repudiation, (breached) the 30 year lease contract with Air Combat USA, in writing, via text message, over 99 days before the cutoff date. O’Reilly was caught lying about the actual expiration date, telling Michael Blackstone, President of Air Combat USA, Inc. that it had expired on June 1, 2016 when in fact it was set to expire, on October 1, 2016 if Blackstone did not extend the lease, by August 1, 2016. Blackstone did in fact make at least 3 attempts in person at O’Reilly’s office, to extend the lease for 30 more years, well ahead of the cutoff date of August 1, 2016. O’Reilly lied to Michael repeatedly, telling him the lease was already expired, and denied his multiple requests for the 30 year extension when, in fact, O’Reilly knew there was still plenty of time, but clearly had no intention to renew the lease with Air Combat USA, as Blackstone had requested. The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) revealed and proved otherwise, by multiple emails between O’Reilly, Ivy Tsai, of Jones and Mayer, and several other City Employees. O’Reilly and Tsai were both caught in multiple lies, under oath in trial, by Air Combat USA’s 40 year Civil Rights Attorney, Gary S. Casselman. Don’t Lie. Strike 1. The City then tried to change tactics by shifting the expiration date of the lease, using a disgruntled Air Combat USA former employee, Larry Blackstone, who was also caught lying under oath multiple times. The lie used by Larry attempted to ‘shift the goal post’ of the Commencement Date of the lease to March 2011, saying that a ‘blue cage’ oral agreement between OCFA (the former tenant) and Air Combat USA, could somehow override the fully integrated and recorded land lease that Jones and Mayer drafted themselves, and is now defending at all cost, (conflict of interest??), could somehow change the commencement date of the lease, and therefore change the expiration date to something that would be early enough to make Michael’s repeated attempts to extend the lease somehow invalid. Don’t Cheat. Strike 2. The lease speaks for itself. Finally, in a desperate attempt to defame Michael Blackstone, and to discredit him, The City of Fullerton attorney from Jones and Mayer, Gary Kranker, tried on many occasions, to defame, slander and find any way to make the Jury not trust the testimony of Michael Blackstone and steal their leased hangar. Don’t Steal. Strike 3. Michael Blackstone and his team of supporters testified under oath told the truth, and simply told the whole story to the Jury. The Truth has prevailed, and always will prevail. The City of Fullerton has once again FAILED. Even with its inflated legal team, with 39 attorneys on staff at Jones and Mayer versus Air Combat USA’s 2 private attorneys, Jack W. Chao and Gary S. Casselman. Even with a well funded government entity with an unlimited legal budget versus a small family business that is clearly fighting for what is right and trying to save its 30 year operation with only a fraction of the financial means to do it. Even though the odds were heavily stacked in their favor, The City of Fullerton STILL LOST. Unanimously. This is a modern day David vs Goliath story. Moral to the story. Follow your heart. Do what’s right. Fight for the truth. Never give up, especially against BULLIES.

    So is this it? This is the end? Will the City of Fullerton do what’s right and pay Air Combat USA the money they owes them, and/or give them back their hangar they stole from them? HELL NO! The City of Fullerton has now FILED AN APPEAL! Of course they have. They are sore losers. Jones and Mayer thinks there is a chance to overturn a Jury Trial Verdict? Wow. The audacity. What are the chances of winning? 50%? 40%? 30%? No. Statistically, only about a 5-10 % chance. But with public funds at their disposal, and nothing to stop them from billing the City of Fullerton more and more money, Jones and Mayer will shamelessly stick Fullerton’s Taxpayers with millions of dollars in frivolous legal fees, paying 7% interest on the money they owe Air Combat USA to defend a case they actually caused and rightfully lost in a jury trial. Justice has been served, and justice will most likely be upheld in the Court of Appeals. Unfortunately, J&M is incentivized , by money to keep going. This is a clear conflict of interest for them, and a waste of public funds. They are in way too deep now. Malpractice is certainly on the horizon for them, if Fullerton decides to stop this cycle. This kind of behavior should be banned by government entities, and the law firms they hire. So, the City of Fullerton is now on its way to the Court of Appeals over a situation that their Attorneys at Jones & Mayer caused? Yes they are. Fullerton and its attorneys at Jones & Mayer can’t seem to help themselves. Or are they simply helping each other make money from their own wrongdoing? Now that seems to be the real story here and one worth following closely.

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