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Turkey ready to capitalise on heavy interest in very light
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Handbo o k Turkey is a country market that leading operators believe is exceptionally suited to
the VLJ. Redstar Aviation's ceo Mustafa Sevki Atac says: "There is a substantial
My Pages group of investors in Turkey who are looking heavily into VLJs. This is obviously a
very interesting business issue now and in the future."
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He adds: "RSA is most interested and will participate either alone or in partnership.
The VLJ generated the most interest at the Istanbul air show which is a significant
proof of its potential."
Atac points out that there are well established operators of larger jets and feels they
have good growth potential now and in the future. But he adds: "There is a
substantial potential for the VLJ as well. It is rather like comparing the 'limousine'
and the 'cab'! Many of us need both at various times and they have different
markets too."
He says: "I would like to stress that there is a complementary fit rather than a
competitiveness issue between the business jet and VLJ." It is a view shared by
AdoAir. Mutlu Inal, pilot and quality manager, says: "We are planning to operate a
VLJ and have made a downpayment on the Citation Mustang."
Capt. Oezkan Aslan, gm, says: "Our future plan is to expand our services in the Pilatus Aircraft
commercial aviation market backed by rising quality and training standards where
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all our crews are trained in accordance with EASA regulations."
The sister companies of AdoAir, launched in 2005, include Adopen Plastik, Adocim
Cimento, Adoport Tourism Industries & Trade and Adomining. Its pilots also include
Capt. Adnan Bosnali and Capt. Erkan Menekse. There is no doubt that the larger
business jets are in great demand in Russia and the Middle East (Middle East focus
EBAN June) but operators in the region, including Prestige Jet which is acquiring
two Grob spn, believe that the VLJ has a future.
Faris Deeb, md, says: "Prestige Jet plans to cover all aircraft size categories so we
can offer wider options and flexibility on charter rates. The spn has the additional
attraction that it will offer an outstanding operational performance including landing
on restricted runways and offering a short take-off distance. It also has a lavatory,
six passenger seats and finally, a VLJ fuel consumption and size, with the midsize
jet range of approximately 1,800 n.m."
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He does not believe that there is mileage in comparing the cost of a business class
ticket with the charter of a VLJ. "However the private jet, such as the Grob in our
case, will certainly offer more flexibility and more privacy. The short same day
operations on flights less than an hour should be cheaper, but with the scenario of
two hours or more, the cost of chartering a VLJ will always be higher, But each
category has its own customers and we are certain that we will be able to build a
customer base."
Prestige Jet has launched a Russian version of its website. The company projects
that 25 per cent of its business could come from the Russian market in the next 12
months
GlobeAir, based in Linz, Austria, has been taking delivery of aircraft since April as it
aims to become the biggest European mainland VLJ Mustang operator. It also plans
to add several Grob spn next year and launch base Linz is being followed into
service by others at Altenrhein and Graz.
GlobeAir promises that between Linz and Parma, it will turn a five-hour-15-minute,
door-to-door commercial trip into a two-hour-and-15-minute trip, with the added
convenience of choosing when to depart and return, with efficient security
procedures.
The website offers a calculation tool, called Radar, to enable prospective clients to
gauge the time and costs of their itineraries and locate the closest airport to their
intended destination. "Clients can conveniently select and book flights from a list of
home bases in central Europe to any destination airport on the continent," according
to md Bernhard Fragner. "Our recently published 'MyBooking' system on our website
supplies clients with powerful tools like MyFlights, MyPassengers, MyAccount. We
are absolutely convinced that the new entry customer on VLJs is expecting to have
such tools available for use. In the near future we want to develop a complete
software suite dealing from web-booking direct to dispatching and flight planning in
real time."
He adds: "Most people are new clients, now discovering the opportunities on such
tools. Some are upgrading from turboprop and a few are downgrading from a light
jet or a medium jet."
GlobeAir currently has three Mustangs in operation and is opening a base in Florence
in close cooperation with the FBO Delta AeroTaxi. "By the end of 2009 we want to
have ten Mustangs in operation. We fully concentrate on a homogenous fleet and
want to expand our business in Austria, eastern Switzerland and the northern part
of Italy," says Fragner.
The company targeted travellers with a €50,000 travel budget offering a five per
cent bonus on flights and others with a €100,000 travel budget offering a seven per
cent bonus. "We had a very good response to our offer, now closed, to help establish
a launch base of customers," Fragner reports. "Our passengers are the typical
on-demand charter clients but there are also the frequent users of air taxi services
and fractional owners, as well as the owner-operators."
Blink, which says its order for 45 Mustangs is one of the biggest Mustang fleet
orders in the world, is targeting both the traveller dissatisfied with business class
and existing private jet users prepared to sacrifice comfort. Peter Leiman, md and
co-founder, says: "There are people who are tired of the hassle and inconvenience of
commercial travel (inefficient scheduling, sub-par airport experience) and who
cannot afford the larger private jet charter but who are willing to pay the premium
to travel on Blink. Equally, there are those who are flying around in private jets that
are oversized for their needs - the average load factor for private jets in Europe is
2.3. The Mustang is the right jet and Blink is able to show a considerable cost saving
over existing private jet travel."
Blink, whose flights are operated by TAG Aviation (U.K.) from London Farnborough,
says its flights are attractive to business class travellers bearing in mind their point-
to-point advantages and can be around half the price charged by some operators in
the larger private jet market.
Blink, which has raised U.S.$30 million in equity funding, says that many of its
clients are "trading up" from business class. Cameron Ogden, co md and founder
says: "A big attraction, of course, is that we fly to secondary cities and other
locations not currently serviced by scheduled airlines. But what's been exciting for
Blink is that our customers are both existing private jet users who have identified
the value proposition and those willing to move up from business class commercial
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travel."
VLJ operators may be attracting worthwhile business but there are warnings that the
focus must be on service as well as price.
He adds: "In the meantime, this industry has witnessed countless operators go out
of business because of unrealistic pricing. Although customers like a good price,
they also expect reliable and professional service across the board, which requires
that you can invest on an ongoing basis. We therefore think that using the Mustang
to better segment the traditional charter offering is a very good way to proceed."
LEA has five Mustangs in service with another five scheduled to join its fleet by early
2009 and boasts it has the most Mustangs already in service. "We have been very
pleased with the market's response to the Mustang. When you introduce a
completely new aircraft type, you usually expect the initial months to be quieter, as
people become familiar with the model," says Galanopoulos. "However, the
Mustangs have all got off to a strong start. Our first one achieved over 150 revenue
generating hours in its first two months. We believe this shows that the core
message about VLJs is getting through - these aircraft are ideal for Europe, doing
virtually everything a larger jet can do, but at a much lower price."
Western Aviation has ordered an Eclipse 500 for delivery in the second quarter of
2009. The VLJ is a bright concept but the concept is still new to the Middle East
market and it will take time for the aircraft to be established in numbers, according
to Imran Ahmed, marketing executive.
Dr. Hans Hunziker, director of JetBird, which plans to acquire a mix of 100 Embraer
Phenom 100 and 300 says the business plan is to fly from regional airport to
regional airport. "Our operation will be closer to the passenger and bring him closer
to his actual destination. Additionally, we will aim for current business jet users who
are looking for better price/value and higher efficiency."
Hunziker says higher fuel prices are good for operators with efficient aircraft and low
specific fuel consumption. "They make life more difficult for competitors with old
aircraft," he points out.
Cyrus Sigari, president of JetAviva, says the company has chalked up well over 100
VLJ sales and acquisition transactions and scores of technical acceptances, and
provides training services. "We have seen a tremendous amount of demand and
interest on the VLJ front from the European markets," he confirms.
Operators of VLJs, especially those investing in large fleets and economies of scale,
are confident that business travellers disillusioned with scheduled services, will
choose point-to-point convenience.
GlobeAir Charter
Blink Charter
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Western Aviation Charter
JetBird Charter
Embraer Aircraft
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