Private Aviation Industry News

Meridian, the award-winning private aviation company based at Teterboro Airport in Teterboro, NJ, is pleased to announce the addition of a Gulfstream GIV-SP (N999AA) to its growing charter fleet of private business jets. This long range aircraft was completed in 1996 and the interior was completely upgraded and refurbished in 2009. It seats up to thirteen passengers, and has the capacity to sleep up to seven for long haul trips. It is based at Teterboro Airport, and is immediately available for charter (Certificate IMJA053F).

Meridian's full fleet of 22 charter aircraft are  available ONLY in FlightList PRO.

This GIV-SP comes fully-equipped with all of the features and amenities expected from today’s discerning business traveler: leather club seating, a full galley with microwave and convection ovens, coffee maker, private lavatory with sink, and a separate lavatory for crew members. The aircraft also features the latest technology, including complimentary domestic Wifi, an inflight satellite phone system, large bulkhead monitors with Airshow® moving maps, individual viewing monitors, and a multimedia entertainment center that features Blu-Ray and CD players.

Dennis O’Connell, President of Meridian Air Charter, says, “We are very excited to be adding another long range aircraft to our charter fleet. Our fleet has been growing rapidly, especially in 2016. This Gulfstream GIV-SP will be the twenty-second charter aircraft on our certificate, and the third one added this year. We think that our clients will be impressed with the impeccably redesigned cabin which offers comfort and convenience to both business and leisure travelers. Another big advantage is that the aircraft does not require owner approval before booking, allowing for an expedited flight approval process.” Meridian currently manages a wide range of aircraft types that are available for private charter: Global 5000, Gulfstream G550, Gulfstream GIV-SP, Falcon 7X, Falcon 900EX EASy, Falcon 2000EX EASy, Falcon 2000, Challenger 605, Challenger 604, Challenger 601, Gulfstream G200, Hawker 900XP, Hawker 800XP, Citation XLS, and Citation VII. Source;  Robb Report - See more at: http://robbreport.com/LuxuryNewswire/aviation/meridian-adds-its-fleet-private-business-jet#sthash.Ev0ieW2c.dpuf

Los Angeles based Avjet Corporation announced that it is selling its aircraft management and charter services to Jet Aviation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics, which was founded in Switzerland in 1967 and is one of the leading business aviation services companies in the world. "I am very excited by the closing of this transaction as I believe that I have left the Company, its employees, and its clients in excellent hands," said Marc Foulkrod, the CEO of Avjet Corporation.

Avjet's and Jet Aviation's full fleet of 52 charter aircraft across the U.S. and worldwide are  available ONLY in FlightList PRO.

"Avjet's 37-years of experience in aircraft management and charter services and an impressive fleet of 45 aircraft makes it the perfect complement to Jet Aviation's operations," said Senior Vice President and General Manager of Jet Aviation's U.S. Aircraft Services David Paddock. "This acquisition will also provide excellent benefits for Avjet's management and charter customers by providing access to Jet Aviation's global network of service facilities." More importantly, Avjet's current Chairman and CEO Marc Foulkrod will continue to own and operate the Avjet sales and brokerage division in partnership with Mr. Andrew Bradley, under the name "Avjet Global." "This acquisition meets our plan to continue to expand our global sales, acquisition, and brokerage services while allowing Jet Aviation to continue Avjet's tradition of excellence in aircraft management and charter services," said Foulkrod. The closing of the acquisition is subject to certain governmental approvals, including relevant airport authorities. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed. Source:  Avjet Corporation Press Release

U.S., European and Asian based charter operator VistaJet experienced a more than 21-percent increase in global flight traffic and passenger growth of more than 23 percent in 2015, which the company said was its strongest year to-date. The company’s fastest-growing market was the U.S., with flights to the U.S. up 135 percent and within the U.S. up 165 percent. The VistaJet fleet, which is entirely owned by VistaJet, will reach 60 Bombardier Challenger and Global jets by March 10.

VistaJet operates 5 Global 5000's and 3 Challenger 350's based across the U.S. available ONLY in FlightList PRO.

Last year, VistaJet began service within China in partnership with Apex Air, which operates a Challenger 850 for VistaJet charters. Flights to China climbed 25 percent year-over-year; flights to Asia were up 62 percent and the number of passengers climbed 57 percent. In Africa, VistaJet saw growth of flight traffic of 15 percent; the number for the Middle East was 58 percent. Europe also saw growth, with the number of flights up 13 percent and passengers traveling into Europe up 17 percent. According to chairman and founder Thomas Flohr, “2015 was a record year for VistaJet. We welcomed more passengers onto our jets than ever before. VistaJet is still increasing its geographic reach in the U.S. and China, and we are taking market share from our main competitors in all of our core markets.” Source:  AIN News

If you’ve ever spotted a private jet in flight or on the tarmac, you’ve probably wondered which celebrity it belonged to. The fact is that many jets are chartered, not privately owned by a fat cat or pop star, and they’re mostly used for business, not lavish vacations. It’s a world shrouded in mystery, so here are five myths about private jets.

- By Everett Potter, Special for USA TODAY 3/7/16 -

1. You need to be as rich as Donald Trump to fly in a private jet. “Yes, it helps if you want to own a Boeing 757 in executive configuration like his, but that is not a reality for 99.9% of the population,” says Mark H. Lefever, president and chief operating officer of Avjet, a broker and adviser. The answer is “no” if you want to charter. A round-trip flight in a private jet can cost as little at $6,000, says Kevin O’Leary, president of Jet Advisors, which offers advice on private aviation options. “The typical charter costs for a light jet are $3,000 per hour with a two-hour per day minimum,” O’Leary says.  “This would allow a passenger to fly from New York to Washington, D.C., and back in the same day for about $6,000. A round-trip flight between New York City and Naples, Fla., would likely cost around $30,000.  So if you fill the seven seats typically found in a light jet, that is $4,300 per person. These prices are still higher than the first-class airline tickets but you don’t need to be ‘the Donald’ to afford them.” Before you reach for your credit card, there are even cheaper deals to be found according to Doug Gollan, editor-in-chief of  DG Amazing Experiences, a newsletter for private jet owners and passengers. Gollan points to JetSuite Suite Deals, which are posted daily and start at around $500. “Last week for $536 you could have flown the next day from Tyler, Texas, to Dallas,” he says “They post the specials for the next day on their Facebook page.” The company recently began offering private jet flights to Cuba, with one-way prices for up to six passengers for $11,152 from Key West (JetSuite says that it’s the responsibility of each passenger to secure their own permission to travel to Cuba, which is allowed by the U.S. government only under specific approved categories). “You can also reach out to the multitude of charter brokers who don’t typically own planes but source aircraft that are available for charter, and then get five friends and divide the costs,” Gollan says. “Under these circumstances you might be able to do a Los Angeles to Aspen trip for around $2,500 a head. “ Still interested in owning your own jet? O’Leary says that “the purchase cost can be a little as $500,000 with annual operating costs at an additional $500,000 or more.  The major concern is with unexpected repairs. A major engine repair or scheduled overhaul on just one engine could easily cost $300,000." 2. If bad weather forces commercial flights to delay or cancel, then private jets have to do so as well.  Lefever says that this isn’t true. Private jets have the ability to land at many more airports than commercial aircraft and to change flight plans very quickly. “Private jets have the option of waiting it out or choosing an alternate airport,” he says. “The best example is LAX-SFO, a common flight that has delays due to weather in the Bay Area.” A private jet, he says, “can file a new flight plan and go to Oakland, which isn’t much farther to downtown San Francisco than the SFO airport,” with minimal delays. 3. Private jets are not as safe as airlines. “There are various ways to compare the stats, but more passenger fatalities have occurred on scheduled commercial flights than on both charter and private jets” in the last 15 years, says Lefever. Comparisons of accident rates per hour operated show less of a discrepancy, but the reality is that both are extremely safe and safety is always the No. 1  concern for both, adds Lefever. Gollan says that “I used to fly regularly on NetJets and my pilots were former 747-400 captains for United Airlines and chief pilots for Fortune 500 companies. Most of the major fleet operators that own and operate their aircraft have spotless records.  Most of the fleet on the charter market is used by the owner and chartered when he or she is not using it, so obviously owners want maintenance and pilots at a high standard.” 4. You might be flying private, but you still have to go through security and deal with the TSA.  No, you can forget about security lines, taking off your shoes and emptying your pockets. You won’t find metal detectors or body scanners. O’Leary says that often “there is no TSA or pre-flight checks required. The pilots may check the ID of the lead passenger, otherwise you will be loaded and on your way within minutes of arrival at the airport.  At some private airports, you can actually pull your car up to the aircraft, unload and have valet (service for) your car so you could be in the air within minutes.” 5. Commercial airlines fly faster than private jets. That silver blip sailing by your window on a transcontinental flight? Chances are it’s a private jet. “The fastest passenger jets in the sky are private, depending on the model of jet flown, “says Lefever. “Private jets also fly above the commercial airlines and a lot of times the weather and turbulence that they incur.“ Some private jets have the ability to fly above the weather up to 51,000 feet and “a couple private jets fly near the speed of sound,” O’Leary says. “The flexibility to fly in and out of smaller airports that are often closer to the departure point and the destination airport makes the actual speed secondary to the private jet’s access to nearly 10 times as many airports in the United States. That makes the door-to-door speed significantly faster when traveling privately.” Source:  Everett Potter, Special for USA TODAY

CAMARILLO, CA--(March 02, 2016) -  As part of a collaboration to launch Film Sun Air, Kim Scolari of Jet Productions teams up with Sun Air Jets in Camarillo, California.

“I really feel Sun Air Jets is in the perfect position to market not only their jets for static shoots, but also their Van Nuys and Camarillo hangars for the purpose of filming.  Besides having a full fleet of corporate jet aircraft, both facilities include gorgeous state of the art hangar space that makes for the perfect film set," stated Kim Scolari of Jet Productions.  "Since we started this venture last year, we have filmed some very big projects at the Camarillo facility, including a Hyundai commercial, the TV shows The Bachelor and Big Freedia, as well as a feature film, videos and other projects." “We are hoping to spread the word around the aviation community as well. Many operators turn down the filming business because it can be very time consuming and labor intensive.  Sun Air Jets is more than willing to take on the task and appreciate all referrals from our fellow aviation friends.   We have some very exciting projects ahead. As a broker, I am thrilled to offer these services to my own Jet Productions clients as well. A hangar is basically a blank canvas and can become anything a Director desires. It is so exciting to see an empty hangar turn into a movie set or video shoot”

View Sun Air Jets music video on Youtube https://youtu.be/hGmfS1aJ6EM

Sun Air Jets at the Van Nuys and Camarillo Airports offers a full complement of Terminals, Hangars, and an extensive fleet of corporate jet aircraft, which allows us to expertly implement all production needs.   Since 2002, our extensive private aircraft fleet and world-class facility have been seen in numerous national commercials, television productions, feature films, print, and video shoots. Film Friendly Sun Air Jets handles all aspects of your shoot: from meeting with your location scout, to helping to choose the appropriate aircraft, to assisting with film permits and providing insurance requirements. On the day of the shoot, we will provide a dedicated representative on site to help provide a seamless experience. For more information call Kim Scolari at Jet Productions 818-781-4742 or she can be reached at Sun Air Jets  (Film Sun Air) 805-389-9336. Source:  Kim Scolari/Jet Productions press release

Travelers with permission to travel to Cuba can now charter a JetSuite Citation CJ3 or Phenom 100 and fly nonstop to Havana from 16 gateway airports in the U.S. One-way prices for the trip (50K JetSuite members) range from $11,152 to $23,675, depending on the departure airport.

All 19 JetSuite charter aircraft and operator details are available in FlightList PRO.

“Our mission continues to revolve around making private air travel accessible to more people than ever before, and offering an unprecedented level of transparency,” said JetSuite CEO Alex Wilcox. “We are thrilled to expand our service to Cuba, a destination I know our clients will be eager to explore.” Passengers are required to secure permission to travel to Cuba according to 31 CFR § 515.560. Among the valid reasons are official U.S., foreign or nongovernmental organization business; journalistic activity; professional research and meetings; educational or religious activities; public performances, clinics, workshops, athletic and other competitions, and exhibitions; support for the Cuban people; and humanitarian projects. Tourism is not considered a valid reason. Source:  AIN Online

Private jet usage is set to take off following the roll out of membership schemes that allow people to make use of jets without owning them. A survey carried out by industry magazine Corporate Jet Investor found that nearly one in four (23 per cent) said that the growth of membership schemes and online charter is fuelling demand for jets, while companies are becoming increasingly likely to opt for jet membership scheme for business travel.

Jet sharing companies such as Wheels Up and Rise are launching a European service in 2016, and plan to be able to fly people the distance from Edinburgh to the south of Spain.

John Colucci head of Wheels Up Europe, told City A.M.: “Corporate customers are excited about it. We have 250 corporate customers in the US compared to around 2000 private members and we want to do more corporate business.”

Wheels Up members have access to an app that allows them to view flights that have already been booked and request a ride share, similar to car hire app Uber’s Pool service.

The industry is shifting as many executive jets are going on the market at knockdown prices following some of the world’s biggest companies scaling back their fleets.

Supermarket Tesco made headlines when it began selling off its fleet of luxury private jets following its accounting scandal and subsequent profit warnings, putting a 14-seater plane up for sale with a price tag of nearly £22m.

Alasdair Whyte, editor of Corporate Jet Investor told City A.M.: “The last six years have been tough for business aviation but there are lots of people trying to grow the market – especially by making it more accessible.”

The survey reveals that over the next three years, 59 per cent expect aircraft sales to increase, compared to 15 per cent who anticipate they will fall.

The US is likely to be one of the strongest markets, with 81 per cent expecting the number of business flights to increase in North America during this period. In Europe, 54 per cent are expecting a rise.

“When you add up the actual cost and the opportunity cost for executives to stand in security queues or get stuck when flights are delayed, flying on a business aircraft can make a lot of sense,” Whyte added.

Another key reason for growth in the sector is the number of so called high net worth individuals is expected to rise over coming years.

Source:  CITY A.M.

Traffic climbed 3 percent in January, and projections call for a 9.1-percent YOY increase this month and a 5-percent rise during the first quarter.

Business aviation flight activity in North America jumped by 3 percent last month versus a year ago and could climb much more steeply this month, according to data released yesterday by aviation services group Argus International.  In fact, the firm is projecting a 9.1-percent year-over-year increase this month and a 5-percent rise during the first quarter, compared with the same three-month period last year. Part 91 activity was up by 4 percent last month from a year ago, while Part 135 charter activity climbed 2.5 percent and fractional flying slid by 0.2 percent.  The overall retraction in the fractional market obscures decent individual gains; fractional turboprop and light and large-cabin jet flying were up 2.9 percent, 2.2 percent and 5.3 percent, respectively. Fractional midsize jet activity fell 2.8 percent from a year ago.

Article Source: AIN Online, Aviation International News.

Year-over-year flying activity rose across all aircraft categories last month by 3 percent. This surge was led by turboprops and large-cabin jets, each logging a 5.3-percent gain.  Light jets climbed by 1.7 percent, while midsize jet flying eked out a 0.3-percent improvement. The largest year-over-year gain for an individual segment was Part 135 large-cabin jet flying, which saw a 7.4-percent upturn last month.

Air Charter Alert Editor's Note -  FlightList PRO released numerous Air Charter Alerts this month of reported increases in 2015 business and flying announced by many US charter companies, including XOJet, Delta Private Jets, New Flight Charters, Key Air and others.

Argus’s TraqPak data logs serial-number-specific aircraft arrival and departure information on all IFR flights in the U.S. and Canada. Source:  AIN Online

On-Demand Private Jet Charter Company Exceeds Profitability Projections—

• 41% increase in EBITDA—achieves highest core profitability in company history
• 14% growth in new program sales and 10% increase in its partner fleet business
• The San Francisco-based company celebrated its 10 year anniversary in January
• XOJET will substantially increase reinvestment back into the business, including aircraft cabin refurbishment, office expansions in New York and Southern California and investments in its pilot, client service and advisor workforce

COMPANY PRESS RELEASE (January 27, 2016) - XOJET, Inc., a leader in private jet charter services, announced today that it achieved record results, delivering a 41% increase in EBITDA and a 14% increase in new program sales. XOJET's on-demand charter model continues to gain momentum as the smart alternative to jet cards and fractional ownership. XOJET was the first to pioneer the on-demand, dynamic pricing model in the private aviation sector, and this month celebrates 10 years of putting passengers first. Now the largest on-demand charter provider in the industry, XOJET continues to gain market share, with retail charter sales up 4% and its partner fleet business up 10% overall. Operational efficiency gains, including fuel savings, drove substantial profitability and margin improvements.

All XOJet aircraft are available in the one-way pricing - Floating Fleets section of FlightList PRO.

"The success of the company this year, and over the past 10 years, comes down to our culture of obsessive client service and dedication to continuous improvement. The market has responded and our company is healthier and more stable than at any point in its history," said Brad Stewart, chief executive officer of XOJET. "We foresee another 10 years and more of bringing the best that private aviation has to offer to our clients." XOJET continued to expand its lifestyle offerings throughout 2015, with the addition of key partners in sports and hospitality. New partners include the NBA Champion Golden State Warriors and IfOnly, a San Francisco-based concierge services firm. The company also continued to invest in established relationships with Yellowstone Club/Discovery Land Company, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Butterfield & Robinson, a luxury travel and adventure company, and Gavin de Becker & Associates, a private security firm. Looking to the year ahead, XOJET will refine its product portfolio with a new and improved Elite Access program, offering guaranteed access to its core fleet and select partner fleets with as little as 12 hours' notice. With enterprise clients in high technology, media and finance, the company is investing in its enterprise sales capabilities and finding new and innovative ways to serve the needs of today's business flyers. This includes expansion of its sales offices and aviation advisor teams in New York, the San Francisco Bay Area and Southern California. The company also plans to invest in its digital capabilities, both in the user experience and supporting systems, which will make planning and booking flights even easier. "Technology is enabling us to deliver a high touch experience for our clients: in the way we communicate, engage and take care of their needs," said Shari Jones, chief marketing officer of XOJET.