Pilot Travel Centers
Encyclopedia
Pilot Flying J is a chain of truck stop
s in the United States
and Canada
. The company is based in Knoxville, Tennessee
where Pilot Corporation, the majority owner, is based. The company is owned by Pilot, FJ Management Inc., and CVC Capital Partners
. The company operates truck stops under the Pilot Travel Centers and Flying J brands.
. Immediately all Pilot Truck Stops were converted into Pilot Travel Centers. At its inception, the number of stops was around 60; however, that was to be short-lived.
In the next few years, Pilot Travel Centers experienced significant growth. Marathon converted many Speedway truck stops, wholly owned by Marathon, over to the Pilot Travel Center moniker starting in mid-2002. Midway through 2003, another major expansion occurred with the purchase of the Williams Truck Stop
chain. The Marathon-Pilot joint venture successfully increased the Pilot Travel Center name recognition throughout the United States, as the number of stops more than quadrupled.
In 2008, Pilot bought out Marathon's interest in the business and entered into a new partnership arrangement with CVC Capital Partners
, an international private equity
firm. Pilot also has partnerships with Road Ranger
and Town Pump
.
As part of the deal, both the Pilot and Flying J chains will keep their identities intact, while both chains started accepting the COMDATA
and Flying J's in-house TCH fuel cards. In addition, Flying J received cash and equity in the new combined chain. Flying J's oil & refining operations as well as its banking & insurance division will remain separate from the new company, and was subsequently renamed FJ Management Inc.
To settle antitrust
concerns with the Federal Trade Commission
, Pilot sold 20 Pilot Travel Centers locations and six Flying J locations to Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores
on June 30, 2010. The merger left the combined company with over 550 locations in 43 U.S. state
s and six Canadian provinces
.
Currently, Pilot Flying J is the largest purveyor of over-the-road diesel fuel in the United States. Pilot Flying J also is known as the largest Travel Center chain in the country with over 550 locations under the Pilot and Flying J brands. Pilot Flying J is also the third largest franchisor of quick service restaurants in the nation, offering one to three different concepts at each location, and is also the largest franchisee of Subway
in the world with over 200 locations. Unlike many travel centers and truck stops, the majority of locations with the Pilot Travel Centers brand do not utilize full-service dining. However, the Flying J brand does utilize full-service dining with Denny's
, as do a small handful of Pilot-branded locations.
Pilot Flying J's main restaurants include Arby's
, Chester's Chicken, Dairy Queen
, Denny's
, McDonald's
, Pizza Hut
, Subway
, Taco Bell
, T.J. Cinnamons
, and Wendy's
, with one location deals with several other restaurants.
Pilot Flying J's main competitors include TravelCenters of America
, Love's Travel Stops
, Stuckey's
, Roady's Truck Stops
, and T/A-owned Petro Stopping Centers.
Amenities featured at most Pilot Flying J locations include:
Wingfoot Truck Care Centers are operated by Wingfoot Commercial Tire Systems (a subsidiary of the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company), claim "our garages are the best in the industry and our service is fast, friendly, and clean." Open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, Truck Care Centers offer:
Truck stop
A truck stop is a commercial facility predicated on providing fuel, parking, and often food and other services to motorists and truck drivers...
s in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The company is based in Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
where Pilot Corporation, the majority owner, is based. The company is owned by Pilot, FJ Management Inc., and CVC Capital Partners
CVC Capital Partners
CVC Capital Partners is one of the top five largest private equity firms globally with approximately US$46 billion in funds focused on management buyouts...
. The company operates truck stops under the Pilot Travel Centers and Flying J brands.
History
Pilot Flying J was founded as Pilot Travel Centers on September 1, 2001 in a joint venture between Pilot Corporation and Marathon Petroleum CompanyMarathon Petroleum Company
Marathon Petroleum Corporation is a U.S. based oil refining, marketing, and pipeline transport company. The company was formed as a subsidiary on September 1, 2005, from the former Marathon Ashland Petroleum, LLC, and is based in Findlay, Ohio...
. Immediately all Pilot Truck Stops were converted into Pilot Travel Centers. At its inception, the number of stops was around 60; however, that was to be short-lived.
In the next few years, Pilot Travel Centers experienced significant growth. Marathon converted many Speedway truck stops, wholly owned by Marathon, over to the Pilot Travel Center moniker starting in mid-2002. Midway through 2003, another major expansion occurred with the purchase of the Williams Truck Stop
Williams Companies
The Williams Companies, Inc. is an energy company based in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Its core business is natural gas exploration, production, processing, and transportation, with additional petroleum and electricity generation assets...
chain. The Marathon-Pilot joint venture successfully increased the Pilot Travel Center name recognition throughout the United States, as the number of stops more than quadrupled.
In 2008, Pilot bought out Marathon's interest in the business and entered into a new partnership arrangement with CVC Capital Partners
CVC Capital Partners
CVC Capital Partners is one of the top five largest private equity firms globally with approximately US$46 billion in funds focused on management buyouts...
, an international private equity
Private equity
Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange....
firm. Pilot also has partnerships with Road Ranger
Road Ranger
Road Ranger is an American corporation whose primary business is operating convenience stores, gas stations, and travel centers in the Midwestern states of Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Ohio, Kentucky, and Indiana...
and Town Pump
Town Pump
Town Pump is a Montana-based chain of truck stops, gas stations, casinos, motels and convenience stores.The chain has been in services since 1953, founded by Tom Kenneally Sr...
.
Flying J merger
In July 2009, Pilot agreed to purchase Flying J's travel centers, as a part of Flying J's efforts to remove itself from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The deal was finalized July 1, 2010, and the combined company took the name Pilot Flying J.As part of the deal, both the Pilot and Flying J chains will keep their identities intact, while both chains started accepting the COMDATA
Ceridian-UCLA Pulse of Commerce Index
The Ceridian-UCLA Pulse of Commerce Index is based on real-time diesel fuel consumption data for over-the-road trucking and serves as an indicator of the state and possible future direction of the U.S. economy...
and Flying J's in-house TCH fuel cards. In addition, Flying J received cash and equity in the new combined chain. Flying J's oil & refining operations as well as its banking & insurance division will remain separate from the new company, and was subsequently renamed FJ Management Inc.
To settle antitrust
Antitrust
The United States antitrust law is a body of laws that prohibits anti-competitive behavior and unfair business practices. Antitrust laws are intended to encourage competition in the marketplace. These competition laws make illegal certain practices deemed to hurt businesses or consumers or both,...
concerns with the Federal Trade Commission
Federal Trade Commission
The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...
, Pilot sold 20 Pilot Travel Centers locations and six Flying J locations to Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores
Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores
Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores is a chain of more than 200 truck stop and convenience stores located in more than 30 states.- History :...
on June 30, 2010. The merger left the combined company with over 550 locations in 43 U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
s and six Canadian provinces
Provinces and territories of Canada
The provinces and territories of Canada combine to make up the world's second-largest country by area. There are ten provinces and three territories...
.
Business profile
Subway (restaurant)
Subway is an American restaurant franchise that primarily sells submarine sandwiches and salads. It is owned and operated by Doctor's Associates, Inc. . Subway is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world with 35,519 restaurants in 98 countries and territories as of October 25th, 2011...
in the world with over 200 locations. Unlike many travel centers and truck stops, the majority of locations with the Pilot Travel Centers brand do not utilize full-service dining. However, the Flying J brand does utilize full-service dining with Denny's
Denny's
Denny's is a full-service coffee shop/family restaurant chain. It operates over 1,500 restaurants in the United States , Canada, Curaçao, Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica, Japan , Mexico, New Zealand, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.Denny's is known for always being...
, as do a small handful of Pilot-branded locations.
Pilot Flying J's main restaurants include Arby's
Arby's
Arby's is a fast food restaurant chain in the United States and Canada. Roark Capital Group owns 81.5% of the company, with Wendy's Company owning the other 18.5%. It is primarily known for selling roast beef sandwiches and curly fries. The Arby's menu also includes chicken sandwiches, appetizers,...
, Chester's Chicken, Dairy Queen
Dairy Queen
Dairy Queen, often abbreviated DQ, is a chain of soft serve and fast food restaurants owned by International Dairy Queen, Inc, who also owns Orange Julius and Karmelkorn. The name "Dairy Queen" is taken from the name of their soft serve product, which the company refers to as "Dairy Queen" or...
, Denny's
Denny's
Denny's is a full-service coffee shop/family restaurant chain. It operates over 1,500 restaurants in the United States , Canada, Curaçao, Costa Rica, Honduras, Jamaica, Japan , Mexico, New Zealand, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.Denny's is known for always being...
, McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
, Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut is an American restaurant chain and international franchise that offers different styles of pizza along with side dishes including pasta, buffalo wings, breadsticks, and garlic bread....
, Subway
Subway (restaurant)
Subway is an American restaurant franchise that primarily sells submarine sandwiches and salads. It is owned and operated by Doctor's Associates, Inc. . Subway is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world with 35,519 restaurants in 98 countries and territories as of October 25th, 2011...
, Taco Bell
Taco Bell
Taco Bell is an American chain of fast-food restaurants based in Irvine, California. A subsidiary of Yum! Brands, Inc., which serves American-adapted Mexican food. Taco Bell serves tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, other specialty items, and a variety of "Value Menu" items...
, T.J. Cinnamons
T.J. Cinnamons
T.J. Cinnamons is a cinnamon bun chain operating across the United States, owned by the Wendy's/Arby's Group.The company was founded in 1985 by Ted and Joyce Rice. He was a cameraman for KCTV Channel 5 and she was an elementary school teacher. The first T.J. Cinnamons opened in the Ward Parkway...
, and Wendy's
Wendy's
Wendy's is an international fast food chain restaurant founded by Dave Thomas on November 15, 1969, in Columbus, Ohio, United States. The company decided to move its headquarters to Dublin, Ohio, on January 29, 2006. It has been owned by Triarc since 2008...
, with one location deals with several other restaurants.
Pilot Flying J's main competitors include TravelCenters of America
TravelCenters of America
TravelCenters of America is the largest "full service" truck stop chain in North America. The majority of customers are professional truck drivers. The corporate headquarters is located in Westlake, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland...
, Love's Travel Stops
Love's Travel Stops & Country Stores
Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores is a chain of more than 200 truck stop and convenience stores located in more than 30 states.- History :...
, Stuckey's
Stuckey's
Stuckey's is a roadside convenience store chain found on highways throughout the United States. Stores are concentrated in the Southeast, Southwest, and Midwest, although operations have existed as far east as Connecticut and as far west as Oregon...
, Roady's Truck Stops
Roady's Truck Stops
Roady's Truck Stops is a chain of independently-owned truck stops in the United States. It is headquartered in New Plymouth, Idaho. With nearly 350 locations in forty-five states, Roady's is the largest truck stop chain in which all of its stores are independently-owned, and second overall in the...
, and T/A-owned Petro Stopping Centers.
Travel Center Amenities
- Parking
- CAT Scales
- TRANSFLO Express travel documents
- Trip Paks
- Truck washes
- Audio bookAudio bookAn audiobook or audio book is a recording of a text being read. It is not necessarily an exact audio version of a book or magazine.Spoken audio has been available in schools and public libraries and to a lesser extent in music shops since the 1930s. Many spoken word albums were made prior to the...
rental - Payphones
- High speed internet kiosks
- ATMsAutomated teller machineAn automated teller machine or automatic teller machine, also known as a Cashpoint , cash machine or sometimes a hole in the wall in British English, is a computerised telecommunications device that provides the clients of a financial institution with access to financial transactions in a public...
- Western UnionWestern UnionThe Western Union Company is a financial services and communications company based in the United States. Its North American headquarters is in Englewood, Colorado. Up until 2006, Western Union was the best-known U.S...
- Check cashing
- Public laundry
- Showers
- Game rooms
- Wireless internetWi-FiWi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
access
Wingfoot Truck Care Centers
- 24-hour road service
- Preventative maintenance
- Tire service
- Part replacement
- Oil changes
- Light mechanical work