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Businessaviationthrough the eyes of the owner/flyer

ABS Jets, the Prague-basedaircraft operator, has raised450 million CZK (about US$24 million) of devel-opment capital by successfullyissuing a portfolio of five-yearbonds. The funds will allow thecompany to continue toexpand its facilities and therange of aircraft services it provides.

The bonds were issued onthe Prague Stock Exchange onSeptember 30th and offer 6.5per cent interest untilmaturity in 2016. Coupons arepaid biannually in March andSeptember, and the nominalvalue of one bond is threemillion CZK. They can bepurchased on the secondarymarket through the PragueStock Exchange or J&T Bank.

“We are very pleased at thelevel of interest from investorssince the bonds were issued.The capital generated fromthe issue of bonds representsa significant injection ofcapital to our revenues andwill enable us to furtherincrease our hangarcapacities and grow ourbusiness,” says ceo VladimírPeták. “The success of ABSand the level of business weare conducting at PragueRuzyne airport ensures thatinvestors are secure in theknowledge that the certaintyof a return on investment isdramatically increased.”

ABS operates one ofEurope’s largest fleets ofLegacy 600 aircraft and is an Embraer authorisedservice centre and salesrepresentative.

The company has greatlyincreased the level ofoperations it conducts atBratislava airport with third-

party maintenance servicesdue to begin there in January2012, and is planning to opensubsidiaries in Kiev and Sofia.

It has also expanded at itsmain base at Ruzyne byopening a fourth hangar inSeptember. This waslaunched with a stylishcelebration at which about170 guests from the USA,Brazil and Europe weretreated to an evening ofentertainment following theofficial hangar openingceremony. Among the guestswere executives from

manufacturers Embraer,Bombardier, Cessna as well asaircraft operators, airportauthorities, suppliers and vipclients. Guests were treated toa fashion show from some ofPrague’s top designers, thiswas followed by a receptionand top-class entertainment.“The evening was judged tobe a great success, guestswere impressed by the newfacilities, especially the newvip departure lounge,” thecompany says.

The timing of the receptionwas coordinated to be on thesame day as ABS Jetslaunched a major marketingcampaign to encourage the

BUSINESS AIR NEWSE U R O P E A N

ISSUE 221 DECEMBER 2011

Aero Jets Darta promotes space flight experiences

Bond issue helpsfuel development

for ABS Jets

Aero Jets Darta, based at Le Bourgetand Nantes, has teamed up with VirginGalactic’s ‘space agent’ in France tooffer its clients the opportunity to travel into space.

Darta customers are already able totake advantage of the long-rangecapabilities of its Falcon fleet, butcommercial director Romain Alatibelieves they may well also beinterested in the experience of earthorbit: “We are signing an agreementwith the agent Jean Luc Wibaux inorder to be able to promote the Virgin

trips,” he says. “Soon our web site willhave a new section providinginformation about space flight and wewill be able to sell those tickets throughJean Luc.”

If the client books through Darta,the price will be the same as if arranged directly with Virgin, withDarta and Wibaux sharing acommission on the booking.

Darta hosted a presentation onNovember 10th. Among the guestswere two ambassadors, a minister,concierges from the best hotels in

Paris, businessmen and entrepreneurs.“We also welcomed the first Frenchfuture astronaut with Virgin Galactic,Yves Pleindoux,” says Alati.

“He has already booked his ticket tospace (number 344) and he wastestifying about his feelings andexperiences.”

Guests were shown a video aboutthe spaceport inauguration two weeksago in New Mexico, USA.

Tickets start at $200,000, and adeposit grants privileged access to all aspects of the project as it

progresses. From astronaut forumswith Sir Richard Branson on hisCaribbean island home or his SouthAfrican game reserve to opportunitiesto tour Scaled Composites to see the new vehicles under development,all future astronauts have vipinvitations to media events to markmajor milestones.

Darta’s Alati is keen to experiencespace flight himself: “Yes, of course I would love to go there… but I willhave to work a little bit more, or win the lottery!”

Green and stillgrowing – JoinJet

receives firstHawker 800XPR

Kristoffer Sundberg of JoinJet admires thegenuine Hawker winglets of the first800XPR upgrade after taking deliveryrecently. He piloted the aircraft himself fromthe Chester modification centre to hisBillund base, and was delighted with theimprovements in its performance. See thefull story on page 4.

Pages 12-14

TURKISHREGIONALREVIEW

ABS Jets – expanding at Ruzyne.

Continued on page 2

PERSPECTIVESPages 6-10

Luxembourg-based businessaviation company Luxaviation hasmerged with FairJets GmbH,retaining a majority stake, to create abusiness aviation group with a fleetof 17 jets.

Following the merger, FairJets willcontinue to operate from Paderborn,and Luxaviation from Luxembourg.“The staff of both companies will beretained in order to allow the sharingof competencies and best practicesand to have a healthy basis for futuregrowth,” a spokesperson says.

Both entities will keep their AOC’sin their respective countries so thataircraft can be registered in Germanyor in Luxembourg, according to therequirements of the financing banksand the aircraft owners.

“We are very proud to be able towork closely with the FairJets teamthat has managed to quickly becomeone of the biggest business aviationoperators in Germany and that hasan excellent reputation with clients,banks and aircraft owners. Thisinvestment is absolutely in line withLuxaviation’s objective to grow andto build a safe and profitablebusiness aviation companyproviding an excellent service to aEuropean clientele,” says PatrickHansen, ceo of Luxaviation.

“Our business models arecomplementary and so are ourmarkets and competencies,”confirms Dr Dirk Bruse, ceo ofFairJets. “We have traditionally beenvery strong in the German marketand attractive to aircraft ownerswhile Luxaviation has developed afantastic sales network throughoutEurope, thus enabling bothcompanies to better match demandand fleet capacity.”

Maintenance and trainingfacilities will be combined to provideincreased flexibility of operations,reduced costs and greater qualitycontrol. Luxaviation will decidewhether these investments will bemade in Luxembourg or inPaderborn, depending on factorssuch as finance and the availabilityof space at the respective airports.

2 DECEMBER 2011 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

BUSINESS AIR NEWSE U R O P E A N

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Celebrating the opening of a fourth hangar at Prague Ruzyne are Antonio Martini, vp customer support and services for EMEA of Embraer; Antonia Tomkova, ABS Jetsmarketing director; Vladimir Petak, ABS chief executive; Peter Kaiblinger, regional salesdirector for central and eastern Europe of Embraer and David Kyjovsky, ABS Jetschairman of the board.

Bond issue helps fuel development for ABS JetsContinued from front page

use and ownership of business aircraft. The campaign, dubbed “Everyone canown a business jet,” was rolled out throughout the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

In 2011, ABS Jets was named by The New Europe magazine as one of the 50fastest growing companies, one of five winners in the private aviationcategory. Other domestic accolades include the EKIA Stability Award whichis given to Czech market leaders, where ABS Jets was among the top sevencompanies in the transport and logistics sector and gained an AAA rating.

President and ceo of Comlux Richard Gaona, aboard his company’s ACJ320, celebrates ordering the world’s first ACJ321 with Airbuscoo John Leahy, vp ACJ Francois Chazelle and president ACJ Habib Fekih.

German-based DC Aviation hasentered into a joint venture with theAl Futtaim Group of the UAE to builda hangar at DWC Al Maktoum airportto house an air charter and linemaintenance operation.

Having planned the project forthree years, the company is currentlycommissioning the hangar, includingvip lounge facilities, and expects it tobe operational by April 2012. “With ahangar area second to none in theUAE, the operation will beparticularly interesting for aircraftmanagement clients owning Airbus319 jets and equivalent aircrafttypes,” a spokesperson says.

The joint venture was formallyagreed by Omar Al Futtaim, vicechairman of the Al Futtaim Groupand Michael Kuhn, ceo of DCAviation. Established in the 1930s, Al-Futtaim is headquartered in Dubaiand has several operational divisionsincluding automotive, engineering,electronics, retail, financial services,general services, real estate and

leisure. It employs over 20,000 people.Meanwhile DC Aviation has

received ETOPS 180 approval for itsAirbus A319CJ vvip fleet.

Previously only a range of 120minutes was allowed, and the newapproval is significant because itmeans that direct flights todestinations such as Hawaii are now possible.

On a long-distance flight fromLondon to Barbados, DC Aviationreports, the flight time is shortenedby an hour, since a more direct routecan be flown. Fuel consumptiondrops by two tons.

The approval was preceded by athorough testing procedure throughthe LBA. The air traffic authorityexamined all relevant documents ofthe business from the past five years –from aircraft and engine records to safety information and otheroperative data.

The 180-minute rule also appliesto most of the other business jets inthe DC Aviation fleet.

DC Aviation reveals plansfor UAE operations

Comlux has signed a commitment foran Airbus ACJ321, the first ever placedwith Airbus for the type. It will join afleet that already includes A318 Elites,ACJ319 and A320 Prestige models,making the Swiss-based company thefirst to operate all four narrow-bodyAirbus business jets.

“The ACJ321 will enable us to offerour passengers even more of thecomfort and space that are thehallmarks of the Airbus corporate jetfamily, while delivering the higheststandards in service on-board,” saysComlux ceo Richard Gaona.

The ACJ321 will have more floorspace and baggage capacity than theother Airbus models, and will be

outfitted by Comlux America. It willbe powered by CFM InternationalCFM56-5B engines.

Comlux has Swiss, Maltese andKazakhstan AOCs, and commercial

offices in Zurich, Moscow, Almatyand Bahrain, and employs over 500people. It has 18 aircraft in its fleet, 13of which are available for charter.

Airbus says that its corporatemodels are the only business jetsflying on every continent, includingAntarctica.

Meanwhile, the ComluxIndianapolis-based maintenancedivision has appointed Tony Bailey asits chief executive officer. Baileybegan his career in aviation in 1983when he joined the United StatesMarine Corps as an aircraftelectrician on F-4 Phantoms, andjoined Comlux Aviation Services inJanuary as vp operations.

Comlux orders its fourth Airbus type

Luxaviationmerges withGermany’s

FairJets

Air Alliance sells Phenoms in Germany

Air Alliance has been appointed as Embraer’s authorised sales representativefor the Phenom 100 and 300 in Germany, joining ABS Jets in the Czech Republic,Avcon Jets in Austria and the Vnukovo-3 Group in Russia.

Based at Siegerland airport, between Frankfurt and Cologne, the companyalso plans to add the entry-level jets to its own fleet at some stage. WolfgangKrombach, ceo and owner of Air Alliance, says: “I am also confident that ourinfrastructure and dedication to customer services will help us to furtherincrease the market share of the Phenom family in this region and, accordingly,develop ourselves as an invaluable Embraer partner in Germany.”

Air Alliance GmbH was founded in 1993 and has matured from a smallhangar maintenance facility to become a full-service provider of aircraft salesand maintenance, charter and ambulance flights, and a flight training centre.

With the ACJ321 addition, Comlux willoperate all four narrow-body Airbusbusiness jets.

Dave Munday, engineering director for the Pilatus Centre, UK distributor of the PC-12, could not resist the temptation.Knowing that the next aircraft would beused initially as a demonstrator, andwould need a temporary registration, hechose M-DAVE. He reports that, despitethe economic environment, sales haveremained strong for the aircraft. “I’mmaking the most of having mypersonalised aircraft on the fleet for ashort time,” said Munday,

DECEMBER 2011 3EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

The year end is always a time fortaking stock and looking forward,but next year the outlook forEurope’s business, economics andeven its currencies seems lesscertain than in previous years.

Public spending across thecontinent will be limited, or evenreduced, and growth slow.

But there are positives too;interest rates look set to remainlow and the Middle East region is far less affected by credit and public finance issues.

In this very edition of EBANwe report on a forecast that shows

a recovery in aircraft deliveries in the medium term based on thefact that, despite the direheadlines, company profits arehealthy (page 14).

Business aviation is inevitablyaffected by factors such asbusiness confidence and creditavailability, but it can take steps to make the most of theopportunities that remain.

Some are already finding waysaround credit-related issues: Wesee how ABS Jets is raising capitalfor growth in an innovative way byissuing its own bonds (page 1), and

how Execujet is providing financefor aircraft buyers (page 11).

Many are taking advantage of

the ability to trade worldwide: DCAviation is expanding its charterbusiness with a partner in theMiddle East (page 2) while GamaAviation is spreading its reach witha new base in Jeddah (page 6),

Vistajet is expanding because ofits concentration on developingeconomies (page 11), PerfectAviation is moving its opsdepartment to Portugal to benefitfrom better local currencyexchange rates (page 5), and evencautious Aero-Dienst is opening abase outside its normal sphere ofoperations (page 5).

And others are simplydiversifying or targeting profitableniches, such as Piaggio adapting itsAvanti II to fulfill a very specialistrole (page 4), and FAI expanding itsrange of services (page 4). Taken tothe extreme, Aero Jet Darta is evenbooking its clients onto trips intospace (page 1).

This is the type of innovativethinking which makes me happy towish all our readers a veryprosperous new year!

David WrightEditor

We can make 2012 a happy new year for business aviationEDITORIAL COMMENT

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CLOSE TO THE HEART OF LONDON

Aircraft parts expert AJ Walter Aviationhas upgraded from its Challenger 604 to a Global 5000 long-range jet. “America is a key market withinAJW’s business growth strategy,” sayscompany president ChristopherWhiteside. “We can now fly directfrom London to Miami and vice versaall year round.

“It flies higher and faster, there ismore room for client entertaining andit has significantly more ramppresence, which is commensuratewith AJW’s brand profile.”

AJW also considered the Falcon900, Gulfstream 550, BBJ and ACJ. “But considering the size andscope of our business, as well as ourglobal ambitions over the short term,the Global ticked all our boxes. Plus we were an existing Bombardiercustomer and anticipate enjoying the same quality and reliability,” says Whiteside.

The company had operated the604 for five years and reportedly onlyhad a technical issue on one occasion.

The Global has been refurbishedwith broadband internet and a fullnew interior. The exterior is protectedwith Permaguard and has a uniquebranded paint scheme which is likelyto change annually.

Meanwhile, as reported in EBANJuly, in partnership with its businessaircraft sales and acquisition broker,Loudoun Aviation, Inc, AJW hasextended its commercial spare partsand power by the hour programmesto owners and operators of corporateBoeing and Airbus aircraft, primarilyBBJ and ACJ, but also corporateconversions from airliners. AJW hasidentified that more than 400 aircraftglobally fall into this category.

UK-based vip charter and aircraftmanagement company AcropolisAviation has already chosen AJW toprovide leasing pool access supportfor its A319, and the globally-basedComlux Aviation Group is using its vipservices for its B767 and Airbus fleet.Global Jet Luxembourg will beworking with AJW for exchange, loanand repair management on its Boeingand Airbus fleets.

“We recognise that BBJ and ACJoperators have completely differentneeds to our airline customers so wehave worked hard to refine ourapproach to this specialist sector,”explains Whiteside. “The efficientoperation of our own GX aircraftacross the world means we are ideallyplaced to share our expertise with thisnew market sector.”

AJW puts Global 5000 towork, and expands intocorporate jet support

Christopher Whiteside, president of AJ Walter Aviation, standing beside the Global 5000at Dunsfold aerodrome in the UK.

Stansted-based Titan Airways ispitching its latest acquisition, a newCitation CJ2+, at ski charters thiswinter because of its ability to operateinto runway restricted airports suchas Lugano in Switzerland.

It also sees the aircraft playing auseful role in airline crewmovements, AOG flights for aircraftspares and engineering teams, UKorgan transplant operations andrescue missions.

Offering a range of 1,600 nm it issuitable, says Titan, for a range of keycities in Europe for leisure breaks andbusiness trips.

The aircraft is configured with six leather seats in total, a club four arrangement including twostowable tables for work, plus twoforward facing seats behind this,electrical power points andindividual reading lights.

“The Cessna Citation CJ2+ is apopular aircraft and we have beenlooking forward to adding it to ourfleet,” says Titan Airways commercialdirector Alastair Kiernan.

Cessna’s sales director UK Tom

Perry welcomed Titan to its family ofCitation owners: “Titan Airways isone of Europe’s premier chartercompanies, now offering aircraftfrom the CJ2+ right up to the Boeing767-300ER. Cessna is delighted the

CJ2+ has become part of Titan’sdistinctive fleet.”

The CJ2+ will be available for short notice, rapid response charterand sub-charter. Titan says that itsunique ‘Go Now’ policy guaranteesthat any of its fleet can be airbornewithin 60 minutes of flightconfirmation.

Three-times winner of BACA’sprestigious Passenger Charter Airlineof the Year award, Titan celebrates 24 years of passenger operations this year.

Its fleet comprises 13aircraft, three Boeing 737-300QCs,one 737-300F, three 757-200s (twojoining the fleet in 2012); a 767-300ER, two BAe 146-200QCs, oneAvro RJ100, an Embraer Legacy 650and the new CJ2+. Several of theaircraft are configured for quickchange, enabling use for eitherpassengers or freight.

Titan’s customers include nationaland regional airlines, cruise lines, popgroups, blue chip organisations,finance houses, major car companiesand tour operators.

Titan Airways adds Citation CJ2+ toits charter fleet for ski trips

The CJ2+ is ideal for short runways.

Trento takes first of two AW139sfor disaster missions

The Autonomous Province of Trento in Italy has taken delivery ofthe first of two AW139 medium twin helicopters.

The aircraft will be operated bythe Fire Fighting DepartmentAviation Unit to perform emergencymedical service, search and rescueand disaster relief missions.

The second is expected to be

delivered by the end of the year.The first AW139 is able to carry up

to two patient litters and six medicalattendant seats, and is equipped with a rescue hoist with 90m cable,cargo hook and a cabin that canbe rapidly reconfigured to performdisaster relief operationscomfortably hosting up to 12 peopleon board.

Jet Aviation begins management of Phenom 300

Swiss company Baruna AG has takendelivery of a Phenom 300 during aceremony at Embraer’s headquartersin Brazil. As reported in EBAN inAugust, the aircraft will be managedby Jet Aviation and based in Zurich.

“We are delighted to deliver thefirst Phenom 300 to Jet Aviation,” saysColin Steven, Embraer vp marketingand sales. “The aircraft fits customers’range requirements and shortlanding distances all over Europe.”

4 DECEMBER 2011 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Danish operator JoinJet has takendelivery of the world’s first Hawker800XPR upgraded aircraft, withgenuine Hawker winglets andTFE731-50R engines, and featuringgreater range, better time to climband faster cruise speeds.

The expanding company has alsoadded a further Dornier 328 Jet tomeet increasing demand from music groups.

The Hawker took its maiden flightwith upgrades on November 14th ondelivery from Chester to Billund,lasting one hour five minutes andusing 2,025 pounds of fuel. “We areextremely pleased to be the first in the world to take delivery of the800XPR. It is a privilege and it hasbeen an amazing experience workingwith Hawker Beechcraft,” saysKristoffer Sundberg, general managerof JoinJet.

“I personally captained the flightto Billund, and the enhancedperformance was noticeable when wereleased the brakes at Chester, in thestraight climb to FL390, the low fuel flow en-route, and the well-

balanced feeling of hand flying thefinal approach.”

JoinJet’s company motto is ‘greenand growing’, so it is keen toemphasise the reduced fuelconsumption: “We are pleased thatwe now are able to offer our clientsthe greenest Hawker 800 in the world with the lowest CO2 footprint,”adds Sundberg.

The company has experiencedgrowing demand for vip services andbelieves that the 800XPR meets itscurrent requirement for flights fromRussia to southern Europe, which itsays is only possible with thisupgraded version of the aircraft.

Joinjet also operates one Hawker800XP2, two Dornier 328 Jets, oneCitation Ultra and a Piaggio P.180.

Hawker Beechcraft has extendedthe availability of the upgradedaircraft to buyers who do not alreadyown a suitable Hawker 800. Themanufacturer will assist customers inlocating and purchasing airframes forinstallation of applicable XPRprogramme updates and any othercustomer-specific options.

Hawker upgrade allowsJoinJet to link Russia to

southern Europe

Bristow Group has signed a contractfor six AW189 helicopters plusoptions for more, all to be used toperform offshore transport missions.It is the first order for the type from alarge fleet operator.

“We are excited by the capabilitiesoffered by the new AW189 and we seeit filling a key position within ourglobal fleet, particularly given theplanned retirement of the AS332Super Puma over the next few yearsand the continuing growth of deep-water developments in our key futuremarkets,” says Mark Duncan, svpcommercial for Bristow.

The AW189 was launched this yearin response to the growing marketdemand for a versatile, affordable,multirole helicopter in the eight-tonne class. Set to enter service inearly 2014, it is optimised for longrange offshore transport and SARmissions. The cabin is configuredwith 16 seats as standard with theoption for a high density 18-seatlayout or an ultra long range 12-seatconfiguration. The cockpit design,incorporating the latest in advancedsituational awareness technologies, isintended to reduce crew workloadand enhance safety.

Meanwhile, CHC Helicopter hasopted to increase its fleet of EC225Super Pumas by placing an order for a

further 20 of the type and an optionfor an additional four.

Deliveries will occur during thenext four-plus years, into 2016.According to CHC, the helicopterswill be needed to accommodateanticipated growth from both currentand future customers. The aircraftare expected to be deployed to serveoil and gas customers in the UK,Norway, Australia and Brazil.

“We are extremely optimisticabout the future of this industry andCHC’s place in it,” says president and

ceo William Amelio. “The EC225 is anexcellent aircraft for extending CHC’sglobal reach, responsiveness andleadership in safety – qualities thatenable us to provide great value toour customers.”

Amelio adds that the EC225 has a“well-deserved reputation for highreliability in the most demandingoperational conditions.”

CHC is the largest operator of theSuper Puma family helicopters in the world, including the mostextensive fleet of the EC225 version.By 2016, CHC could have as many as50 EC225s in operation on behalf ofits customers.

“The EC225’s success story couldnot have been written without CHC,and it is an honour for Eurocopter tohave CHC as the EC225’s flagshipoperator throughout the world,” saysLutz Bertling, Eurocopter’s presidentand ceo.

The EC225 is adapted to missionsin severe weather, with systemredundancy, a highly capableautomatic flight control system andthe capability for full deicing – whichallows flight in all known icingconditions. When configured foroffshore crew change operations insupport of oil and gas producers, theEC225 can be rapidly converted forsearch and rescue operations.

CHC president and ceo William Amelio(right) and Lutz Bertling, Eurocopter’spresident and ceo.

Offshore support operators plan forlong-term helicopter renewals

JSC Flight Inspections and Systems,the Russian company which providesflight inspection and calibrationservices, has taken delivery of its firstPiaggio P.180 Avanti II and ordered afurther five of the specially adaptedaircraft, to be delivered from 2012.

The company is responsible forinspecting ground-based navigation,radar and communication systems in the CIS territories and alreadyoperates an extensive fleet oflaboratory-equipped aircraft. Itcovers all civil aerodromesthroughout the Russian Federation.

Alberto Galassi, ceo of PiaggioAero, said: “We are delighted to beginour partnership and cooperationwith JSC FIS, whose work is so

essential to the strategicdevelopment of the Russian aviationsector. This first delivery confirmshow well suited the Avanti II flightinspection aircraft is to the rigorousrequirements of Russian flightcalibration missions.”

Piaggio says that the Avanti II has arange of 1,470 nautical miles IFR,equating to up to 4.5 hours flighttime, while having 40% lower fuelconsumption than an equivalentturbofan aircraft. The aircraft is alsocertified for rapid landingprocedures, an essential factor inmissions for radio measurement andthe calibration of airport controlsystems.

Three of the special mission flightinspection versions are currently inservice with ENAV, the Italian airtraffic control agency. In flightinspection configuration the AvantiII has equipment to test ILS, VOR,MLS, DME-P, VDF, UHF and UFcomms, PAPI, landing light systems,airport lights, surface radar, varioustypes of GNSS systems, radiointerference monitoring and signalquality monitoring.

The Avanti II achievedcertification in Russia in September.

Russian inspectors harnessAvanti’s economy and range

Shaking hands on the deal which will see a further five Avanti II flight inspectionaircraft testing the airports of Russia are Piaggio ceo Alberto Galassi and JSC FISgeneral director Sergey Yashin, with JSC FIS deputy director Alexander Voronkov andMubadala Aerospace executive director Homaid Al Shemmari behind.

The comprehensive technical equipmentaboard the adapted Avanti II.

Euro-Asia Air already has four AW139helicopters in service.

Empire takes third Falcon 7X under managementDubai-based Empire Aviation Grouphas added a third Falcon 7X to itsmanaged fleet on behalf of its ownerin Oman.

Paras Dhamecha, executivedirector of Empire, comments: “The7X is an outstanding aircraft andoffers an attractive package of range,comfort and efficiency for the owner

and for the corporate and leisurecharter market. It is backed byDassault Falcon’s local service andsupport which is so important andreassuring for owners.

“We take a unique assetmanagement approach with ouraircraft owners, who benefit from ourposition as a one-stop-shop for

private aviation services. Eachaircraft owner is a unique businessmodel requiring a tailored solutionwhich can combine management,operation and even charter to helpoptimise the aircraft investment. Thisbusiness model works very well andthe demand for our servicescontinues to increase.”

Euro-Asia Air of Kazakhstan hasordered two additional AW139helicopters for offshore transportoperations over the Caspian Sea. Oneof the two will be provided with FullIce Protection System allowing flightsinto known icing conditions.

Currently Euro-Asia Air operatesfour AW139s for flights to offshorerigs and islands for foreign oilcompanies.

FAI takes aircraft sales, lease and management in-houseFAI rent a jet AG, the operator of one of Europe’s larger fleets of business jets

and expert in medical evacuation and transport around the world, hasestablished a new aircraft sales, lease and management department.

“We have been in business for 25 years, successfully operating a fleet ofmore than 20 jets both for executive air charter and as air ambulances, and arealso a fully certified EASA Part 145 maintenance facility,” says SiegfriedAxtmann, chairman of FAI. “We operate out of our brand new state-of-the-arthangar and office building at Nuremberg airport. Opening this newdepartment was a logical decision. We are aiming to develop our turnkeyaircraft management programme clientele and assure regular and smoothaircraft turnover,” Axtmann adds.

To head this department Axtmann has appointed Thierry S Huguenin asdirector of aircraft sales, lease and management. Huguenin is a veteran ingeneral aviation with more than two decades of aircraft brokerage and salesunder his belt. He is well known in the industry as the owner and founder ofTSH aero, Inc.

“I am delighted to join the ranks of FAI rent a jet AG and reinforce my long-time business relationship and friendship with Siegfried Axtmann,” says Huguenin.

AW139s head forthe Caspian Sea

DECEMBER 2011 5EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Cessna CitationAuthorised SalesRepresentative

www.timleacockaircraft.com +44 (0)1258 818181THE NEW CITATION LATITUDE

Martin Fueessl, fleet chief Phenom 300 and Andreas Strabel, key account and aircraft management team leader for Aero-Dienst in front of the Embraer Phenom 300.

Just one month after expanding itsbusiness jet fleet with an additionalCJ3 based in Oberpfaffenhofen nearMunich, Aero-Dienst has takendelivery of a brand new EmbraerPhenom 300. Owned by a newaircraft management customer, thejet will now be operated out ofDusseldorf with immediate effect. Itmeans that Aero-Dienst will bestationing an aircraft outside Bavariafor the first time.

The Phenom 300 is the first aircraftof this type to be used commerciallyin continental Europe. It has a rangeof more than 3,400 kilometres and aflight time of up to four and a halfhours, allowing non-stop flights todestinations such as Reykjavik,Bergen, Helsinki, St Petersburg,Moscow, Istanbul, Cairo, Malaga andthe Canary Islands.

Aero-Dienst employs three pilotsfor the Phenom at its Dusseldorf base.

The Phenom 300 was deliveredfrom the Embraer plant in Sao José dos Campos, Brazil, to Germanyin November.

“We are delighted to have thePhenom 300 in our fleet, the onlycommercial supplier in continentalEurope to do so,” says AndreasStrabel, key account and aircraftmanagement team leader at Aero-Dienst. “That we have just recentlybeen able to win two new aircraft

management customers demons-trates the positive perception thatcustomers have of our professionalteam, and that is something that fillsus all with pride.

“The Dusseldorf base means weare not only expanding our range oflocations and offering companiesthere an attractive alternative forbusiness travel, but are also nowactive beyond our existing bases in Bavaria.”

Aero-Dienst steps outside Bavaria with first Phenom 300

DRF Luftrettung has placed an orderworth close to $200 million for 25EC145 T2 helicopters, making the airrescue organisation Europe’s largestcustomer for the type.

The first five aircraft will go intooperation in the window fromDecember 2013 to the end of 2015,and will successively replace BK 117s.The remaining 20 are to be deliveredin phases up until 2022.

DRF is based in Filderstadt andoperates a total of 31 helicopterstations in Germany, Austria andDenmark, eight of them in 24-hour service.

“To meet our own high qualitytargets, DRF has been settingstandards in the areas of flightoperations, technology and medicine

for many years. Top priority is safetyand efficiency, so the continuingdevelopment of the helicopters we

deploy is essential,” said Dr Hans JörgEyrich, member of the board ofdirectors, at the signing of the deal.“The EC145 T2 is excellently suitedfor air rescue missions thanks to itsperformance capability and thefenestron. Particularly in nightrescue missions, the shrouded tailrotor provides a further measure of safety.

“After Munich and Regensburg,we will soon be flying night timeemergency operations with nightvision goggles from Berlin as well.With the deployment of the EC145 T2in our 24-hour operations, we will beable to rely on a helicopter that isoptimally suited for the broadlyvaried requirements of modern airrescue,” he added.

Rescue expert DRF lays plans to buildEurope’s largest EC145 fleet

DRF executive board members SteffenLutz and Hans Jörg Eyrich, either side ofEurocopter's evp programmes WolfgangSchoder at the historic signing.

FlyingGroup has officially opened its third hangar at Antwerp airport, a state-of-the-art 5,100 square metre structure with a 32 metrediameter rotating platform to easeaircraft access.

Built in conjunction with anaircraft owning partner, the newhangar is now the largest at theairport and required an investment of€2.7 million .

It effectively doublesFlyingGroup's capacity, and comp-lements a range of infrastructureimprovements planned by the localauthorities. The Flemish governmentis to build a tunnel along the R11 roadin the spring, as well as safety zonesfor the runway, and during 2012 themanagement of the region’s airportswill be privatised.

During an inaugurationceremony, FlyingGroup presentedguests with its Falcon 2000S, andannounced that it is to invest in twoof the latest Citation M2 jets for itsshared ownership programme. Theseare due to be delivered in 2014.

The financial problems which ledto a worldwide economic crisis alsohad an impact on the activities ofFlyingGroup. “However, we haven’tbeen commercially inactive,” thecompany reports. “New customershave been attracted, and the numberof aircraft in the FlyingGroup fleet hasrisen from 20 to 35 aircraft during thethree years of the crisis so far. Becauseof this FlyingGroup is undeniably thebiggest operator of business jets inthe Benelux.”

The company’s head office is inAntwerp, but it is also active in theNetherlands, France, Luxembourg,Russia and Romania.

Antwerp hangaropens doors for buoyantFlyingGroup

FlyingGroup management celebrate thehangar opening.Currency benefits lead Perfect

Aviation to LisbonPerfect Aviation has moved its flightoperations department from its Etoy,Switzerland, headquarters to itssubsidiary office in Lisbon, Portugal.The company operates a managedfleet of midsize to large aircraft on a Portuguese AOC, and reports thatthe move caused no interruption of service.

The relocation of this department’sround-the-clock function is said to bepart of the continued efforts of thePerfect Aviation Group to optimise itsorganisation and resources in theinterests of its growing internationalclientele, by reducing exposure to the persistently high value of the Swiss franc.

Perfect Holding SA is listed on theSIX Swiss exchange and providesaircraft management and operations,worldwide charters, aircraftacquisitions, sales and consultancyservices.

6 DECEMBER 2011 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

PERSPECTIVES – Business aviation through the eyes of the owner/flyer

For business or pleasure, there isnothing like taking the controls

This month our Perspectives featurereveals the innermost thoughts ofone of business aviation’s rarestbreeds: the owner/flyer. Crowdedairspace, complex aircraft systemsand tight flight ops legislation allconspire to ensure that mostcorporate aircraft are flown byprofessional crews, and rightly so,while the majority of other businesstravellers will prefer to leave theflying to charter or fractionaloperators.

However, there will always bethose business people for whom thelove of flying means that they aredetermined to find a way to flythemselves. Historically a secretivegroup of individuals, a few havekindly agreed to share theirthoughts with us in the followingarticle.

Some are piloting their ownbusiness’s aircraft in pursuit ofindustrial aims unconnected withaviation, others combine workwithin business aviation itself with aflying role, while many enjoy flyingin a purely leisurely capacity.Whichever course they follow, theirstories provide an excellent insightinto one important sector of thebusiness aviation community.HansenGroup A/S has bases inDenmark and the UK where itdesigns, manufactures and installsaluminium facades, curtain walling,bolted structural glazing, commercialwindow and door systems.

pilot the return flights, as I’ll have hada busy day.”

HansenGroup operates a King AirF90 but is expecting delivery of a newPremier 1A this month. The F90 waschosen because of its short tripcapability and speed. The Premierwas chosen mainly as an upgrade andto serve 500+nm missions.

The company fly these aircraft forbusiness purposes only but Hansenhas a Mooney Ovation that he flies forpleasure plus a vintage MilesMercury. He says: “Our businesswould not be where it is todaywithout an aircraft. We have 18business units in six countries. Allunits are within 30 minutes from anairport, the closest being just fiveminutes away.”

Hansen was excited by theprospect of upgrading to the Premierand also enjoyed undergoing typerating at FlightSafety Wichita, and headds: “The planning and flyingaspects are most rewarding, but Ifound the Jeppesen updates mostboring, luckily these have now beentaken over by the iPad.

“And tomorrow I co-pilot thePremier to the Dubai Airshow. That, Iam looking forward to.”

Frank Kusserow, director FBOservices for Jet Aviation’s eight FBOsin EMEA & Asia, with four located inEurope, frequently flies his privately-owned and operated Mooney single-handedly to get around. “I do flyalone most of the time,” he says, “butadhere strictly to the limits I setmyself for the use of this aircraft.”

Kusserow chose the Mooney as hefeels it is one of the most advancedsingle engine aircraft. “It providesgreater speed and lower trip costthan any other single engine airplaneI know. I can fly eight hours non-stopdue to fitted long-range tanks, and itclimbs at the usual take-off mass atmore than 1,000 feet a minute, wellbeyond FL100, making the normalascent a matter of about 10 minutesif required.”

From his office located inDusseldorf, Germany, Kusserowoften uses his aircraft to attendmeetings at company headquartersin Zurich, the group’s largest MRObase in Basel or to prepare for theOlympic Games at Jet Aviation’sFBO/MRO facility at London BigginHill airport. “The use of the privateaircraft provides me with muchgreater flexibility and often withbetter economy than flyingscheduled airlines, although thereare some limitations of the singleengine and no pressurisation.”

In fact he is looking forward tostepping up to an aircraft that he canenjoy all year round in the future.

Kusserow finds that working for amajor company dedicated tobusiness aviation eases his travel. Thecompany’s FBOs provide him with all the basic requirements for his tripsto be flown according to regulations.He explains: “I send out my schedule

Our businesswould not bewhere it is nowwithout a planeHans Kolby Hansen,HansenGroup A/S

Jim Watt of Tayside Aviation takes to the skies in one of the company’s Grob 115s.

“We do building materialcomponents, mainly high rise glassfacades,” explains Hans Kolby Hansen.“When flying we usually depart at07.00-08.00, spending one or twohours in the air. Business carries on tilllate afternoon and then we return orgo on to our next destination. I alwayscaptain the outbound flight and our

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Greaterflexibility thanscheduledFrank Kusserow, JetAviation MRO & FBOLine of Business forEMEA & Asia

Gama Group is to expand its servicesinto Saudi Arabia by opening a basein Jeddah during 2012. It has formed ajoint venture with local companyImitiaz under the name GamaAviation, and this will specialise inaircraft management and aim tooperate charter services under itsown Saudi air operator’s certificate.

The next step will be to add aircraftmaintenance and consultancyservices, replicating the company’sexpertise in Europe, USA andelsewhere in the Middle East. Gama Aviation’s first base will be at Jeddah’s King Abdulazizinternational airport where it willemploy around five people in thestart-up phase. It will be overseen byregional md Dave Edwards.

“This is a significantannouncement for Gama and is theculmination of a substantial period ofplanning and negotiation,” said ceoMarwan Abdel Khalek. “We aredelighted to have Imitiaz as ourstrategic partner in this venture,which will bring to Gama many yearsof experience in the Kingdom.Breaking into the important Saudimarket is a huge achievement and along-held wish.”

Gama Group set up in Sharjah andDubai three years ago, and obtainedits UAE air operator’s certificate inFebruary 2010. This operation nowsupports 25 staff and five managedaircraft at both Sharjah Internationaland Dubai International airports,including an Airbus ACJ318 whichjoined the fleet in October.

Configured with a 14-seat vipconfiguration, the ACJ is now thelargest aircraft in the company’sMiddle East fleet and its 11thmanufacturer type globally. It is beingoperated and managed on behalf of aprivate owner, based in Sharjah.

Gama Aviation is on track toobtain its UAE CAR 145 maintenanceapproval and is working to completea hangar facility at Sharjah, which willalso be home to a new FBO.

“Our new Sharjah facilities willafford our customers significant costbenefits. Sharjah is also a great fuelstop destination between east andwest,” says Dave Edwards.

Further expansion is planned withbases in Beirut and Hong Kong.

Middle Eastexpansion sees

Gama add first Airbus

Andy Patsalides has joined Gama Groupas director of marketing, based atFarnborough.

A Pitts S-2A is PatrickMargetson-Rushmore’saircraft of choice forfun flights.

DECEMBER 2011 7EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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“I usually do my flightplans myself,but if there are short notice changesand I am tied up in meetings, I haveused our dispatch service once in awhile — there is no greater benefit ofhaving access to experienced staff,and sometimes I am jealously lookingat our managed aircraft clients andcrews who enjoy this service andflexibility all the time.”

Kusserow says he flies for businessand pleasure. “It certainly helps withbusiness. In business aviation youneed to fully adjust to your clientsneeds because they use the benefit oftheir business jets for the very samereason than I use my Mooney – to bemore flexible and quicker thanothers, that is the advantage.” At theend of the day, Kusserow says: “Ienjoy the feel of satisfaction whenswitching off the engine, after comingfrom “on top” and finally beingwelcomed with a smile.”

One incident Kusserow recountstook place in an aircraft other than hisMooney. “Once I had to conduct asafety landing with another aircraft ata small GA airport in central Europein summer due to smoke in thecockpit. After shutting down theengine and stepping out of theaircraft, airport emergency staffrushed to our plane in a 1950s firetruck, “geared” in T-shirts, shorts,sandals and fire-hats.

“The contrast with the pressure ofthe critical situation beforehandcertainly showed in the bright smileon our faces when these “firemen”jumped out of their truck. Luckilythere was no fire or serious damage tothe plane, otherwise we would havebeen afraid that they could hurtthemselves – and we were able tokeep our smiles through the rest of the day.”

Thomas Byron has been aprofessional pilot for the past 25 yearsand over that time owned variousaircraft to fly for pleasure. “I haveflown aircraft from the C152 to theB747-400 and now I have a PC-12 thatI use for my business UniversalAircraft Registry based in JerseyChannel Islands,” he explains.

“We are an offshore aircraftmanagement and leasing company, soI need to meet clients all over Europe. Iusually fly between 30 and 40 hours amonth, so I definitely get enoughflying in each year. I usually fly alone,but have at times taken on people whohave their PPL licence and want togain time on a more complex aircraftin the Euro control structure.”

As Byron explains, the PC-12 is asingle engine turbine aircraft andpressurised so it can fly above mostweather, has a fairly long range, iscomfortable and economical on fuel.“I chose it because of cost andperformance. The price is high, butthe performance and the economicsof a low fuel burn make it pay for itselfafter five years.”

He adds: “I mainly fly for business;for pleasure I try to get into ahelicopter or glider which is realflying. When I do it for pure pleasure Idon’t want to have to hit a deadline tobe somewhere. That’s why I enjoyglider flying so much – in the air with no noise or distractions and it’sreal flying!”

Byron’s most memorableexperiences occurred while flying inthe airlines and he has numerous

stories he could tell if space allowed,but overall he feels that flying theJumbo Jet was his most exciting time.“Being the big boy in the air and on theground is something and it’s the bestaircraft I have ever flown, andprobably the easiest.”

A typical day for Byron consistsmainly of being in the office but whenflying for business, planning takesplace the night before with weather,permits, landing clearances and overflights. Once at the airport he carriesout the typical pre-flight routine andensures all paperwork is in place.

“Then it’s just get in, start up andenjoy the trip,” he says. “But if weatheris an issue then it becomes work. Theworkload to fly, especially when alone,is plenty and it also depends on thetime – whether day or night. I try toavoid terrible weather, but if businesscalls then I go, no matter what.”

Kurt Bjerneby has been an aircraftowner/pilot for more than 25 yearsand has seen first-hand theadvantages of using business aircraftto save time and increase efficiency in

his job as a sales agent of electricaland electronic products on theScandinavian market. “This isespecially true with airport groundsupport equipment customers who Iusually meet after having parked atthe ramp close to their office,” heexplains. “My company ScanvacControl AB is also active in telecoms

as part owner of a company inGermany where I bring customers tomeet directly with the manufacturer.”

Bjerneby’s first business aircraftwas a Piper Aztec that was replacedby a Cessna 414 with pressurisedcabin and better passenger comfort.The next step was to a PiperCheyenne II, which he often flew for

seven years to France, Germany andUK until the company bought its firstjet, a Cessna Citation in 1996.

“We also had our aircraft operatedcommercially for complementary use since the mid-80s so I trained as a professional pilot and achievedan ATPL licence required for flying the Citations as a captain; anexciting and worthwhile experience,”Bjerneby believes.

Since 2005 Bjerneby has flown a well-equipped Piper Seneca IV,which meets his day-to-day need to visit customers all over Sweden,and sometimes to manufacturers inDenmark, Germany and France. For longer distance flights to central Europe, Bjerneby feels thatscheduled airlines are now offeringprices far below his own aircraft costs,so it is a viable alternative forinternational travel.

“I normally use our companyaircraft for trips where travelling bycar exceeds two hours, depending onweather and airport conditions. Ireduce my business flying in winter,mainly for travel comfort, but flying isoften a safer way of travelling whenthe roads are icy. I would be glad to flymore, but office duties sometimeslimit it.”

The Seneca may be flown singlepilot, Bjerneby points out, as it doesnot have the same requirements asfaster and more complex aircraft.With the Citations, 90 per cent offlights are flown two pilot crew withstrict crew coordination. “The SenecaI am flying was bought new in 1996and is equipped for IFR flying in allweathers. It was hangared alongsideour previous aircraft when we bought it and it became an attractivechoice when I heard that it was forsale,” he explains. “The Seneca hasbeen a proven workhorse since the

We usually fly our aircraft as a twocrew set-up; my brother Michaeland I fly it at least once or twice amonth. This could be just a fewsectors or sometimes several longsectors. We chose a Cessna 441because it has the range and speedthat we need at a reasonable cost.

We fly from the UK to the USseveral times a year and on thosetrips we regularly manage the NorthAtlantic non-stop going east. Thatsaves time and fuel as we are RVSM-certified. All of our trips are businessrelated. We export our products allover the world, and the availabilityof our aircraft at a moment’s noticeis invaluable to further our businessin Europe and the US. Wemanufacture pharmaceuticalintermediates, which means wehave to visit our customers on aregular basis. One of our mainmarkets is the USA. A typical tripthere starts on a Saturday morningwhen we depart our base inScotland. Our first stop tends to be

Greenland, from there we can makeNew York or any other airport on theeast coast quite easily. The followingday we position ourselves on to thewest coast where our first meetingon the Monday takes us. We thentend to go all over the US andusually end up for our final meetingon the Friday in Miami, Florida. Thefollowing day we fly Goose Bay inCanada non-stop, followed the nextday non-stop back to Scotland.Usually on that sector we still have1.5 hours of fuel left in the tanks.With business growing, it looks likewe will need to fly further east and alot more south in the future.

Our Conquest II is standard withno additional tanks. At 35,000ft wehave a range of 2,400nm. The fuelflow at standard ISA works out at320lbs/hour. Total fuel on board is3,200lbs and cruising speed is290kts. It’s a good job we have a peetube on board!

One of our most memorableflights was when we needed to go to

Sao Paulo in Brazil. The aircraftperformed faultlessly and thesectors from Brazil to Europe via thesouth Atlantic were an absolutepleasure. Sao Paulo to Fortalezafollowed by Sal in Cape Verdefollowed by Faro and then back toScotland. We did this two years in arow. I do all planning myself andlook after maintenance which isdone in Grand Junction, Colorado.

We have in the past looked atother types of aircraft, including jets,but there is nothing out there thatwill outperform our Conquest II atthe relatively low operating cost weare used to.

Personally, my worst experienceas a pilot was flying a CessnaCitation II from Geneva to Prestwickand flying over Lockerbie some 20minutes after the fatal Pan-Am flightwent down. I remember seeing theflames as we passed over the top.That sight will stay with me forever. Stephen Klinge, Klinge Chemicals

There is nothing out there that will outperformour Conquest II at the operating cost“

”

For pleasure,I get into agliderThomas Byron,Universal AircraftRegistry

I reduce mybusinessflying in winterKurt Bjerneby,Scanvac Control AB

Continued on next page

Hans Kolby Hansen (in front) steps offone of his aircraft with members ofHansenGroup A/S Jesper Klith Andersenand Kent Ernst Hansen.

new shared ownership company inEurope and spend a lot of timeworking on it.”

A present from his wife of a triallesson in a PA28 Warrior at Carlisleairport some ten years ago inspiredSohrab Padidar to complete his PPL. After he became involved withthe flight school he bought a PiperArcher for his personal enjoyment,while also becoming involved in abusiness capacity by purchasing afew training aircraft that were leasedto the flight school.

“Over time I became interested in pursuing a business in aviationwhile still being able to fly myself,”Padidar says.

“About this time I had decided toupgrade the Archer to a PiperSaratoga as the Archer was not bigenough to carry my family and theirluggage to our house in France.

8 DECEMBER 2011 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

70s so I felt comfortable when wemade the deal.”

Commercial flying with planningand flying in all kind of weatherconditions keep Bjerneby’s jobinteresting. “I flew several medicalflights with organs for surgery andalso with the patient as a passenger.The flights were cleared as HOSPflights by ACC, often life-savingflights with direct routings andpreferences.”

Bjerneby’s working day usuallystarts in his office following upcurrent business. Most contact withcustomers are via email andtelephone but at least once a weeksomething comes up that requires ameeting. “That’s when aviation is apart of the job and the life,” he says.

As a businessman Bjerneby has tosatisfy his customers as well as themanufacturer, so flexibility andefficient use of time is key. He pointsout: “My aircraft is my time machinewhich makes it possible to seecustomers within a few hours, animportant argument in creatingconfidence. So I consider that all mybusiness flights have contributed tobusiness and the satisfaction of allparties involved. That's whatmotivates my business flying aftermany years of experience.”

Patrice Barrault of French companySunrise Aviation flies between 20 and30 hours a year, an amount that hefeels is somewhat insufficient, saying:“I would like to fly more but I have torestrain myself because of theridiculous cost of Avgas, at thismoment $10.45 a gallon!”

Barrault flies a Baron 55 aboutwhich he enthuses: “I find it greatsince I can fly IFR very safely and cancarry four or five people at 175kts. It isa comfortable aircraft and I just enjoyflying it. I only fly for pleasure; flyingis too serious a thing to mix pleasureand business. The risk is to practiseboth of them badly. I love flying IFR, Ithink it is the safest and mostpleasant way of flying.”

Recalling his previous experiencesBarrault says: “I have had many veryexciting ones but maybe the mostexciting was float flying in Canada.Actually, I am working on building a

Perspectives: the owner/flyer commercial licence, and Padidarcompleted his CPL/IR at Oxford andBournemouth. He says: “Going backto the classroom to study intensivelyproved to be a tough challenge at theage of 46, but nothing worth having inlife is easy.”

During type rating, Padidar cameacross a 2006 Pilatus PC-12/47 withsix executive and two standard seatsand decided it was the one for him.He found it enjoyable to fly andperfectly suited to providing anaffordable, luxury aircraft for peoplewho would benefit through the timesaving and efficiency.

“My daughter had decided tofollow my footsteps into aviation, andhad recently completed her PPL. Shecompleted her CPL/IR and we fly ourfamily and friends whenever theopportunity arises,” he explains.

Together, they set up the companySky Elite to provide leasing,management and sales with a maingoal of providing the benefits ofowning your own aircraft but “withnone of the hassle,” he says. “Wedeveloped a pioneering concept ofdry leasing by the hour, doing awaywith the large initial financial outlayassociated with fractional ownership.Instead, we have a transparent ‘pay asyou go’ hourly rate, enabling ourclients to enjoy quick and convenientaccess to our aircraft.”

Nowadays, Padidar says he doesnot get to fly as often as he would like,due to his other businesscommitments. “My daughter takescare of the day-to-day running of thecompany, and we fly together whenthe aircraft is not being used by one ofour clients.”

Summing up, Padidar feels that hisaircraft has enhanced his businesscareer through its reliability andefficiency, while also allowing him tofly alone or with his daughter.“Highlights of being an owner/pilothave been flying eight familymembers to Bournemouth for acelebration, and flying through theSwiss Alps en route to the Pilatusfactory near Lucerne. Using theaircraft as a tool for growing myaviation business is the main reasonfor owning the aircraft, but it is nice tobe able to use it for my own pleasure.”

“On average I fly about four to fivetimes a month which usually equatesto around 10 hours. I would definitelylike to fly more,” explains LarsThrane of satellite communicationsequipment manufacturer Thrane &Thrane. “Nowadays, most of myflying is for business so workrequirements determine how often I fly.”

Thrane usually takes hisBeechcraft King Air 200 GT up alone,but sometimes has a co-pilot withhim. “When I decided to fly forbusiness, I wanted a twin-enginepressurised aircraft so I could fly in all types of weather. For flying in Europe, a turboprop is almost asfast as similar jets and is veryeconomical to fly.”

With his role in the businessfocused on strategic planning andproduct development, Thrane’s day-to-day working life is very muchoffice-based. But as a globalbusiness, he is often required totravel to meetings all over Europe,which is where the aircraft and thesatcoms system on-board becomesextremely useful.

With a passion for flying and over25 years’ experience, Thrane is veryhappy he can do it as part of hisbusiness. As a manufacturer of

aircraft category. A good safety recordwas one of the deciding factors, along with the ability to fly into shortand unimproved aerodromes. “Noother aircraft capable of this can alsocarry a 3,500lb payload and give easeof access through its large cargodoor,” he adds.

As an instrument rating is aprerequisite to the PC-12 type rating,the next logical step was to acquire a

Keen flyer Dr Keith Hendry is md of APEM – and is seen here holding the ‘Business of the Year Award’ presented by the ManchesterEvening News media group for its work in the scientific and renewable energy sectors. From left are MEN business editor KevinFeddy, APEM md Keith Hendry, directors Adrian Williams and Stuart Clough and Alistair Campbell, who made the presentation.

Jim Watt of Tayside Aviation says hegot into the aviation industry hisinterest was piqued when he servedin the Royal Navy. “Although theWasp helicopter was the high techdevice of its day, I look back now athow basic they were,” he says.

Watt left the Royal Navy andflying in 1981 and worked for a fewcorporate companies. “Then I tookup flying three-axis microlights fromOban and Cumbernauld Airfieldsand, while this was great fun, theengines at that time were prettyunreliable and after a couple offorced landings I moved on to flyinglight aircraft in 1992.”

Involvement in various groupswas a social way to fly and he foundit a good way to fly, keeping costs low.Around 10 years ago Watt bought aTB10 Tobago, which he still owns,and used this for business aroundthe UK. “Shortly after this I got theopportunity to buy Tayside Aviationwith a few business partners. Imoved from owning one airplane toowning 22, so I guess I moved fromhobby flying to a business. At the ripe

old age of 49, I went off andcompleted my ATPL exams, my CPLand added a flying instructor rating.”

Tayside Aviation is a flighttraining organisation in Scotlandwith 18 aircraft and a Part 145maintenance facility. “Based atDundee airport, we deliver alltraining up to and including PPL,CPL, MEIR and MCC courses. Weintroduced an ALSIM MCC simulatorthree years ago to assist with thedelivery of the multi-engineinstrument rating courses. Taysidealso run a second flying school at Fife

Airport operating five Cessna aircraft.On behalf of the RAF, Tayside deliverthe air cadet pilot scheme that offers200 scholarships a year at DundeeAirport.”

In Watt’s opinion, the turbo-charged Seneca 2 is a good trainingaircraft. “It is big and heavy enoughto bite you if you were to mishandleit and, due to the heavy controls, itneeds to be flown in trim. It goodshort field capabilities and on singleengine it will let you know what yourfeet are for.”

Watt is accountable manager forengineering as well as for flying andbeing a flying instructor means hecan role change several times a day.“There isn’t a typical day as we haveto take advantage of weather and theflying programme. It is nice, however,to be able to teach flying and run thebusiness at the same time. It breaksup the day. I once flew sevendifferent types in one day – not bydesign, a few had to be moved to andfro from the two sites, a fewinstructional sorties and an engin-eering test flight. All in a day’s work!”

One of the most memorabletimes Watt recalls was an earlyDecember week. He had dispatchedtwo instructors to pick up one ofTayside Aviation’s Grob 115s from thefactory in Germany. They had spentseveral days trying to get back toDundee when he received a callsaying they had to leave the aircraftin Nancy, France, due to weather andwere coming home by train. “I wasup a ladder fitting a new windsock atthe time wondering where Nancywas,” Watt says. “The following day Iflew the Arrow to Nancy with anotherpilot and we flew the Grob in form-ation all the way to Dundee the nextday. Then it was back running themill at the end of the week.”

So what are the most rewardingaspects of Watt’s job? “I still enjoyflying the TB10 and instructing ischallenging and rewarding. I get tosee so many people go solo which initself is a privilege. Seeing thecompany grow and our students goon to get a job with an airline withour help is the icing on the multi-layered cake.”Jim Watt, Tayside Aviation

Flight training business owner flew seven types in one day

A turboprop is veryeconomical to flyLars Thrane,Thrane & Thrane

Eventually, with the rising costs ofAvgas, it became clear that moving toa turbine aircraft would be financiallybeneficial and the right aircraft wouldalso help me to set up a viablebusiness.”

After researching many differentaircraft types, he says that the PilatusPC-12 stood out as the most cost-effective, safe and versatile aircraftavailable in the small business

Patrice Barrault of Sunrise Aviation, pictured on the left with his brother.

Flying is too serious to mixpleasure and businessPatrice Barrault, Sunrise Aviation

My daughterhas followedme intoaviationSohrab Padidar,Sky Elite

Manchester University. It specialisesin aquatic science issues relating tothe water and energy industries;anything from surveying fish in riversto analysing water samples in thelaboratory.

The company now has offices andlaboratories in Manchester, Chester,Edinburgh, Cardiff, Oxford andDorset, all located near an airport andwith good reason, as Hendry explains.

“The story began in the early 1990swhen we developed a river walkoversurvey method of assessing fishhabitats, assessing impacts of waterindustry-related activities andcovering thousands of kilometres ofthe UK’s rivers.

“By 2002 we began to realise thataerial photography might offer amuch better and potentially cheaperway of gathering these data. Cameratechnology and computer processingpower were making great strides andwe decided to invest in some R&D toestablish the feasibility of doing riverhabitat surveys from the air. Hiringestablished aerial photographycompanies appeared to be the mostobvious way forward.”

Initially, results were quiteencouraging but dogged withpractical logistical problems saysHendry. For example, for the veryspecialised nature of the work notonly good aerial photographyconditions (ie a bright cloudless sky)were required, but also low riverlevels to see the river bed. Theserather restrictive requirements meantthat the number of days a yearavailable were few and far between,no more than 40 or 50 a year.“Therefore when conditions wereappropriate we needed to be up inthe air snapping away. The problemwas – so did everyone else with anaerial photography requirement.

“As the new kids on the block we

DECEMBER 2011 9EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Continued on next page

satellite communications equipmentfor aircraft, the company is also ableto use his aircraft as a test-bed, as wasthe case for the Aviator 200SwiftBroadband system. “I reallyappreciate having this system on-board as it enables internetconnectivity on iPad, smartphones orany other wireless device.”

Thrane has had some amazingexperiences flying over NorthernCanada and Greenland, saying: “Forme, it’s an area of extreme naturalbeauty and I love flying among theclouds and taking in the scenery. Ilove mountain flying and it’s always apleasure flying in the Swiss Alps.”

Thrane’s passion for flying is long-held. “It is is something I’ve alwayswanted to do and even as a young boyI would look into the sky and see thesmaller aircraft and wish that I couldbe up there. For me, the most excitingaspect of flying is departures andlandings, as I’m sure many pilotswould agree.”

As chief executive of LondonExecutive Aviation (LEA), PatrickMargetson-Rushmore has been ahigh-profile figure in Europeanbusiness aviation since the companywas founded in 1996, regularlycommenting in the media andspeaking at industry events.

In fact Margetson-Rushmore hasbeen a pilot since 1990, flying not oncompany business but for his ownpleasure. He competed regularly inaerobatics competitions in the 1990sand still owns and flies a Pitts S-2A forfun. He remains involved in

regulated industry. Being able topotter over to France for lunch is awonderful feeling.”

And the downside of being a pilotbased around London? “The Englishweather, of course!”

Dr Keith Hendry is managing directorand founder of APEM RemoteSensing, a leading UK aquatic scienceconsultancy firm that began life 25years ago as a spin-out company from

competitive aerobatics as contestdirector at the annual BritishAerobatic Association ComptonAbbas event.

Until 2008, Margetson-Rushmorealso owned a twin-engine Piper PA-31Chieftain and, although he no longerowns that particular aircraft, he stillenjoys flying single-engine aircraftfrom aero clubs.

Looking over his flyingexperiences, Margetson-Rushmorenaturally recalls the excitement ofaerobatics but also highlights thethrill of skiing trips in the Chieftain toCourchevel in France. “CourchevelAirport is literally on the side of amountain,” he says, “with a runwayonly 525m long and a gradient of18.5˚. Both ends of the runway are

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22-23 FEBRUARY | CANNES | FRANCE

2012

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Pottering overto France forlunch iswonderfulPatrick Margetson-Rushmore, LEA

‘interesting’, to say the least. As youland, you approach a solid wall in themountain and, as you take off, therunway ends in a sheer drop! Flyinginto Courchevel is simply one of themost challenging and rewardingexperiences for any pilot.”

Margetson-Rushmore loves flyingfor many reasons, not least “thecamaraderie among pilots, from allwalks of life, and the challenge ofengaging the brain to achievesomething most people never do.Another great pleasure for me isseeing the joy non-pilots feel whenyou take them for rolls and loops inthe S-2A.”

He also relishes the relaxation that flying brings. “The sense offreedom, even in such a highly-

Kurt Bjerneby, left, and airport staff at Stockholm Skavsta airport on a customer visit for a ground power unit delivery.

My instructortaught me allabout aviationDr Keith Hendry,APEM RemoteSensing

10 DECEMBER 2011 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

tended to be last in line, withestablished clients getting first bite ofthe cherry. So after umpteen failedand frustrating attempts we decidedto do what we do in every other partof our business, take control of theprocess from start to finish. Thatmeant employing our first full-timeprofessional pilot and buying ourfirst aircraft.”

Things have moved on a lot sincethen, and APEM now has four surveyaircraft; a Brittan Norman Islander, aVulcanair P68 Observer 2, a Cessna172 SP G1000 and the newest recruitfresh from the factory, a VulcanairP68C. Hendry explains: “All of our aircraft are purpose surveydesigned or modified specifically forthe type of work we undertake. Wetend to invest in new or factoryrefurbished aircraft for reliabilityand, in our view, safety. During ourearly days chartering we hadsufficient experience of 1970s flyingbuckets to put us off for life!”

While river habitat surveys are still

outfalls in rivers and coastal areas isanother growth area for us, as well aspipeline and asset surveys. However,what sets us apart from others in thefield is that we control the wholeprocess from start to finish, fromdesigning the survey, flying andgathering the data, to analysing theresults, reporting them, and evenacting as expert witness in court orpublic inquiry to defend ourconclusions.”

However, the journey has notnecessarily been a smooth one andHendry says that, as a company withno previous direct involvement withthe aviation world, APEM werevulnerable to being “taken advantageof” by some of the less scrupulousoperators in the aviation world.

“But despite some very negative,and costly, experiences, we wereconvinced that a greater involvementand understanding of the aviationworld was the way to overcome thebarriers we were continuallyencountering. The best way of doing that was to learn to fly. So threeyears ago I went back to school togain my PPL.

“I was fortunate to have acommercial instructor who not onlytaught me how to fly but also a hell ofa lot about aviation. I now havearound 250 hours and have justobtained my IMC rating.”

Hendry endeavours to fly at leastonce a week, visiting one of six labsaround the country. “It’s a great wayto get around, flying into Edinburghto visit the lab at Penicuik, orBournemouth for the Dorset lab.

“I’m also a frequent visitor toKidlington, the Oxford lab beingsituated just across a few fields andour Cardiff office is only 20 minutesfrom the airport. Staff can easily beferried in from other offices formeetings at our Chester offices atHawarden airport.”

And to overcome any issues withinclement weather, Hendry says thatfair and foul weather routes to eachoffice have been chosen so they canbe reached on all but the worst days.

“I tend to fly with either one of ourprofessional pilots or more recentlywith a part-time colleague, recentlyretired from a career in air traffic. Notonly is he an absolute mine ofaviation knowledge relating toanything RT related, but a highlyexperienced pilot/instructor/examiner in his own right so I’mextremely fortunate. Most of the time,when it’s not on survey duty, I fly theCessna 172. It’s equipped with aGarmin 1000; although I found itslightly confusing and evenintimidating at first, I think it is themost fantastic piece of kit and a realasset for the type of routine flying I dobetween specific sites across thecountry.”

Next up for Hendry are plans totake his twin rating in the near future.“The Vulcanairs both have the Sagemglass cockpit, so not too dissimilar tothe G1000 I’m used to. Who knows,one day I might even be allowed to flythe Islander!”

A typical flying day for Hendrymight mean arrival at Hawarden for9.00, a couple of meetings, thenjumping in to the Cessna at 10.30outbound for Oxford, Kidlington.“After a beautiful one hour 10 minuteflight and five minute taxi ride, I’ll besitting in our Begbroke office having acup of coffee with a new member ofour R&D team,” Hendry says. After aworking lunch, there might be moremeetings before heading back to theairport, departing to be back in theoffice in Chester after an ILSapproach in the dark into Hawarden.This will be followed by anothermeeting with the chief pilot: “Areprimand actually, aboutinadequately completed paperwork –the bane of my flying life – and home by 6.30. Now you couldn’t dothat by road!” ■

and mammal surveys, have becomeincreasingly important. “Weundertake all kinds of biological

surveillance monitoring,” saysHendry, “doing much of what we usedto do on foot, from the air. Monitoring

Perspectives: the owner/flyer

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BUSINESS AIR NEWSE U R O P E A N

Sohrab Padidar’s love of flying grew from a trial lesson a decade ago. Credit: mikehughescreative.com.

VistaJet has added to its $2 billionaircraft order backlog by signing upfor a Global 5000 and two Challenger850 aircraft. It now expects to havemore than 60 aircraft in operation by2015, double the current inventory.

The company is also upgrading itsfleet by taking delivery of up to six newLearjet 60XR aircraft by year end,maintaining its commitment to anaverage fleet age at less than two yearswith no single aircraft being morethan three years old.

Thomas Flohr, founder andchairman of VistaJet, says: “This latestorder is in response to rapidly growingcustomer demand in the BRINCcountries (Brazil, Russia, India,Nigeria and China) and other fast-growth developing markets in whichwe operate. These markets currentlyaccount for over 75% of all our flights.

“At the same time, the geographicreach of our business customersplaces demanding requirements onour fleet with sectors typically ofbetween five to ten hours duration.”

The latest orders were announcedjust one month after the delivery ofthree new Challenger 605 aircraft,following the company’s strategicdecision to focus on mid-to-large,longer range aircraft.

Further deliveries of additionalaircraft are scheduled to begin at theend of this year. These include 10 newGlobal 6000 and 10 Global 8000aircraft that will significantly increaseVistaJet’s ultra long-haul capability.

Commenting further, Flohr says: “No one else in the privatebusiness aviation sector is takingdelivery of brand new aircraft at therate we are, nor is anyone morecommitted to maintaining theyoungest fleet in the skies. It is a boldstep and another example of ourcommitment to providing a uniquecustomer experience.”

VistaJet is headquartered inSwitzerland and has operationscentres in London, Salzburg, Dubai,Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong. Itoffers customers a ‘Program’ solutionwith guaranteed availability at a fixed hourly rate as well as on-demand charter.

DECEMBER 2011 11EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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Designer uniforms set the toneCreative director Nina Flohr with flight crew in VistaJet’s new uniforms, created by Italian fashion designer Giancarlo Petriglia. The uniforms had to be stylish, while also remaining durable and comfortable enough to withstand long work hoursin the air.

Petriglia was particularly inspired by the 1960’s jet age and the uniforms areintended to be reminiscent of the understated elegance of the flight attendant andpilot uniforms of the era. In contrast, Petriglia took inspiration from the verymodern style icon Carla Bruni for the sophisticated flight attendant hats.

The designs incorporate the pervasive red detailing, ubiquitous on VistaJet’sfleet of aircraft. “I have greatly enjoyed working closely with Nina to create suchbeautiful uniforms for the VistaJet flight crew,” Petriglia says. “Nina’s wonderfulspirit, innate class, and modernity are reflective of my designs.”

Demand fromdeveloping

markets swellsVistaJet fleet

Nomad Aviation in Berne,Switzerland, has added a Global 5000to its vip charter fleet.

The ultra long range aircraft hasbeen added onto Nomad’s AOC forworldwide operation and startedcommercial vip and executive charterservices during November with itsinitial flight from Switzerland boundtowards Siberia in Russia.

It has 13 vip seats in dayconfiguration, or three single bedsand two king-size beds in nightconfiguration, a large cargo

compartment ensuring sufficientspace for plenty of luggage, and longrange capability exceeding 4,700nm.

The addition is an important stepfor Nomad as it completes thecompany’s line-up from light jetssuch as the Cessna CJ1+ and CJ3,through super midsize in the form ofthe Gulfstream 200 and Citation X,and heavy Challenger 604 andEmbraer Legacy, right up to the ultra-long range.

“With the ‘Big Bird’ now in service,Nomad Aviation has strengthened

and underlined its position in theEuropean executive charter market.The Global 5000 aircraft offers the

same high standard cabin andexclusive, individual level of qualityand service as the other Nomadaircraft,” say Rainer Schnurr andClaude Neumeyer, the companyprincipals.

“On the one hand the additionalaircraft provides our customers theultimate long range capability, butalso even more availability andflexibility. Our aircraft arestrategically well located to servecustomers in eastern as well as inwestern Europe,” they add.

First stop Siberia as Global 5000 completes theNomad Aviation executive charter range

The Nomad Global 5000; targeting westand east European business.

CPI orders Czech Republic’s first AW119Ke Czech Property Investments hasplaced an order for an AW119Kehelicopter for corporate transport. Theaircraft will become the firstAgustaWestland helicopter deliveredto the Czech Republic, and will beoperated on the owner’s behalf by HeliCzech. It will be configured with a six-seat cabin interior and is expected tobe delivered in mid-2012.

More than 50 AW119Ke have beensold around Europe for a range ofapplications including vip/corporateand passenger transport, sightseeing,air taxi, fire fighting, law enforcement,homeland security and utility.

CPI, a joint stock company, is asignificant real estate business dealingwith development, investments andproperty management. The companyhas been operating in the Czech andSlovak markets since the beginning ofthe 1990s.

Heli Czech is a well-establishedcompany operating a fleet of eightRobinson helicopters that are used forvariety of tasks including pilottraining, aerial works and passengertransport. All company pilots,including the owner, are experiencedformer or current pilots of the CzechAir Force helicopter Tiger squadron, amember of NATO Tiger Association.

ExecuJet Aviation Group haslaunched a turnkey aircraftownership package that includesfinancing options, called SimplyFly.

ExecuJet ceo Niall Olver explains:“ExecuJet now has a fund available fornon-recourse financing, both on andoff balance sheet.

“This capability has beencombined with our aircraft sourcing,management and operations servicesinto a single integrated product, andmakes us unique in meeting a longapparent market demand. Non-recourse finance is a rare product andwe trust this will ensure that ExecuJetcontinues to stay one step ahead inthe industry.”

In addition to sourcing the aircraftand providing financing, ExecuJetcan operate the aircraft under one ofits seven AOCs, arrange maintenanceand technical support and provideground handling services.

If required, ExecuJet says it canalso encapsulate ownership,operating costs and risks into a costmodel whereby monthly costs andhourly rates can be fixed, and alongwith limited variable costs, these canbe on charged on a monthly basis.

The availability of non-recourseand off balance sheet financingmakes this programme unique, saysExecuJet. A quick and simpleapproval of the contracting processdifferentiates the solution fromtypical, classical finance offers.SimplyFly does not require additionalassets or personal guarantees beyondthat of the aircraft.

The aircraft offered within theSimplyFly programme are of a US$20 million or higher value and area maximum of five years old atinception.

Qatar Executive has entered a long-term agreement for pilot trainingservices on the Global Express XRSand Challenger 605 with Emirates-CAE Flight Training in Dubai, UAE.

As anchor customer, QatarExecutive pilots will be the first totrain on the new Challenger 605 full-flight simulator when it is approvedby regulators in early 2012. Trainingon the XRS will begin this month andwill include initial and recurrentcourses as well as a range of CAE e-Learning general operating subjects.

“Private aircraft operated in theArab world are set to triple over thenext ten years so there will be agrowing need for training andmaintenance support as this sectorflourishes,” said Akbar Al Baker, ceoof Qatar Airways. “To meet thisgrowing demand, it is essential for usto acquire the best possible quality

training for our crew,” he added.Meanwhile, Qatar Executive has

relaunched its web site with newfeatures. Visitors to the site can see anin-depth view of all three aircrafttypes, as well as in-flight video clips,information on flight ranges, mapsand cabin amenities, and an option to request quotes online, with aguarantee of quick responses fromthe 24/7 sales team.

Al Baker says: “One of our greateststrengths is that we operate theyoungest fleet of business aircraft inthe Gulf, and this superiorpositioning is reflected in the new-look web site.”

The personalised service forpassengers includes the convenienceof booking an aircraft in as little asfour hours before departure, access topremium airport lounges, and check-in ten minutes prior to take off.

Qatar Executive will be firstaboard Challenger 605

simulator in Dubai

ExecuJetprovides thefinance for

aircraft buyers

Berkovits sets sights on EuropeFormer sales representative withDassault Falcon and sales managerat Ixair, Emma Berkovits has joinedcharter broker HighProfile. “Theoperational and technicalexperience gained during myprevious positions are more thanessential to be an excellent broker,”she says.

“Business aircraft use is notmature enough in France as it is inthe US or Middle East,” she adds,looking forward to the challenge ofbringing new customers to businessaviation. “I am glad to joinHighProfile and my daily focus nowis to switch from a developed start-up to a major player in Europe.”

ACI launches mobile phone appAir Charter International hasofficially launched its SkySearchmobile application for iPhone andAndroid. The app allows users toobtain instant charter prices.

Commercial manager ClaireBrugirard is keen to point out itsadvantages: “SkySearch is ownedand powered by Air CharterInternational (Arabia) Ltd, unlike alot of other executive jet apps thatare branded with a broker’s logoand powered by Avinode. Operatorsdo not have to pay to be listed onthe SkySearch database, which isnot the case with applications suchas Avinode where both the brokerand the operator have to pay amembership to have access to it.

“This is truly a milestone for us”adds Brugirard. “From SkySearch’sconceptual birth we have beenworking hard to provide this extraservice to our loyal customers.”

Global operators can be better value, saysCourtenayPrivate Jet Charter says the costs ofprivate jet flights from the Gulf tomultiple destinations in Europe andNorth America can be 50 per centlower if a global operator is used.

At the Dubai air show chiefexecutive Hugh Courtenay pointedout that local private jet companies

might have to send a jet from theMiddle East to transport passengersfrom two domestic destinationsinside Europe, for instance. “Thiscost is passed on to the customer,”he says.

“If a customer on the Paris-Dubairoute wants to proceed from Paris toRome and then to Mexico or LasVegas and then to Beirut, he will pay

triple the bill if he uses a localprivate jet company because thesecompanies don’t have presence norpartners in these destinations whichrequires them to either keep theprivate jet with the customer for alonger period, or despatch a jet fromtheir home base, with the customerpaying for the back and forth costs.”

Vertis marks anniversary Private jet charter ‘boutique’ VertisAviation has celebrated its firstanniversary by adding a Learjet 60to the portfolio of jets it now offersto private and corporate clients.

Partner Luca Madone says: “Weare excited by this new strategicaddition to our operational fleethaving just signed the marketingagreement with the Learjet 60’sprivate family owners. The aircraftwill be exclusively marketed byVertis and operated under theGerman AOC of GAS Air Servicelocated near Munster.”

The Vertis team also markets aLearjet 31A, a UK-registered AirbusCorporate Jet and Falcon 7X out ofLondon Farnborough through theiroperating partner and reports that ithas been successful in generatingrepeat business on the aircraft.

CHAR TER BROK ER NEWS . . .

12 DECEMBER 2011 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

Sancak Air’s Yavuz Murat Yuzgen reports stability in this year’s demand over last year.

Recent growth still leavesbusiness operators plenty

of potential in TurkeyOn the border between east andwest, Asia and Europe, Turkey is alsodifficult to characterise in economicterms. It is one of the G20 majoreconomies of the world, with athriving private sector and oftenclassified as a newly industrialisedcountry. On the other hand it is alsooften seen as an emerging market,with plenty of room for stronggrowth.

For business aviation there iscertainly a great deal of potential;The capital, Istanbul, is reported tobe home to 28 billionnaires, rankingfourth in this regard behind NewYork, Moscow and London.

The country has been less affectedby the credit crisis because its anks have remained highly regulatedand stable.

Along with the economy, businessaviation has been growing fast inTurkey. Eurocontrol figures revealthat there were 37 businessmovements daily in 2009 and thatthis grew by almost a third to over 48

movements the following year.The two major international

airports of Istanbul have shared themajority of this growth. Theestablished hub at Ataturk is nowactually declining in business traffic,possibly due to slot allocationdifficulties as its commercial trafficcontinues to expand, but this is morethan compensated for by strongincreases at the second airportSabiha. Named after the world's firstwoman combat pilot in the 1920s,Sabiha is on the Asian side of the cityand has attracted several basedbusiness operators and a choice ofspecialist handlers. Its newcommercial passenger terminalopened in 2009.

Other leading airports forbusiness traffic are Ankara, Antalya,Bodrum, Izmir and Dalaman.

The operators responding to ourunscientific survey certainly seem toagree that business is good,especially those with domestic orlong-haul capabilities.

Sancak Air is based adjacent toAtaturk International airport at itsown pivate Sancak Heliport,operating a fleet comprising a Bell206L LongRanger, Bell 430 and twoBell 206B JetRangers. Sancak Air’slatest addition to the fleet, a brandnew Bell 206 JetRanger, arrived in2009 and has since flown over 400hours without any problems.

General coordinator Yavuz MuratYuzgen reveals that the company’sflight hours have stayed relativelystable in the past year, performingpassenger, freight and medevac

Ugur Kocoglu is general manager ofSkyline, part of Kocoglu Group.

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MBA graduate Emma Berkovits workedin insurance in the US and with ClubMed in Morocco before discoveringbusiness aviation back in France withDassault.

With winter upon us it is always cheering to look back at summer holiday snaps,and so without apology we are delighted to recall a promotional trip organised byExklusiv Aviation back in August. The company manages a Global Express XRS atLuton and a Legacy at Farnborough, and filled twelve seats with the great andgood of charter broking. Onboard were: Darren Harrison of Exklusiv Aviation, JoelFenn and Tim Rees of Air Charter Service, Jody Fisk of The Charter Company,Philippe Fragnière of Exklusiv Aviation, Steve Moore of International JetClub,Piers Teakle of Avolus, Philip Smith of Execair International, Paul Castleton ofHunt & Palmer, Pauline February of Jet Air and Emma Brown of Direct Air Charter.Exklusiv is looking to collaborate with charter brokers regarding clients planningto purchase their own aircraft and place it in management. “We are very satisfiedwith 2011’s level of activity and are looking forward to a constructive andforward-thinking 2012,” says director Philippe Fragnière.

TURKEYREGIONALREVIEW

charters generally coming fromRussia, the growth in the Turkisheconomy has not had much impacton the company’s charter hours and,up to this point, neither has theeconomic crisis. Tahe Aviationcarries out passenger flights with aCitation 550 Bravo and GulfstreamG150 from its base at Esenbogaairport; the G150 was the company’smost recent addition and isperforming to expectations. Tahecites meeting new regulations as oneof the issue most likely to affectoperations.

Also based at Esenboga airport isMenekse Aviation, but companypresident Erdogan Menekse reports adrop in demand for charter this year,feeling the effects of the currenteconomic situation. The fleet is madeup of a Citation 650, Hawker 800,Beechjet 400 and the most recentaddition, a Learjet 45.

The company offers passenger, airambulance, survey and surveillance,photography, aerial works andsightseeing services.

Skyline Transportation andTrade Co, a subsidiary of KocogluGroup, claims to have the secondlargest helicopter fleet in Turkey afterthe Turkish Armed Forces. Servingthe Turkish Ministry of Health forEMS operations, part of Skyline’s fleetconsists of an EC145, 10 EC135s andeight A109E Power helicopters. Forair taxi charter, it operates a Bell 206,Bell 230, EC 130 and two A109s, whilean Ankara-based Legacy 600 has justjoined the fleet under the frameworkof the Turkish Health Ministry’s air

DECEMBER 2011 13EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

ambulance project. Both the Legacyand EMS helicopters are well-equipped to perform advanced lifesupport with the capability forinstant intervention, except surgery.

Skyline’s Ankara-based Hawker400XP serves as air taxi and privateambulance jet, with a well-equippedgalley, four-place centre-clubseating, a large cabin. “It has thelongest range and the fastest speed ofany aircraft in its category,” saysKocoglu Group’s Efvani Aybike Koc.

A new hangar has beenconstructed at Ataturk Internationalairport GAT and is expected to startoperations this month. Whilebusiness flights in Turkey in generalhave increased considerably in thepast year, figures show that they haveactually declined at Ataturk whileincreasing at Sabiha. Koc comments:“We do not have the correct figureson hand for the decline; the reasonmight be slots at Ataturk. On theother hand there is no hangar spacein Sabiha Gokcen. The key businesscompanies are on the European sideof Istanbul and transportation to andfrom there to Sabiha Gokcen isalways congested.

“There is a rumour that in the nearfuture Turkish Airlines mightcompletely pull out of Ataturk andmove to the third airport planned forthe European side of Istanbul.

As an authorised JAR 145organisation for maintenance, repairand overhaul services, Skyline says itis the only manufacturer-authorisedservice centre for Hawker Beechcraft,Bell Helicopters, Agusta Westlandand Pratt & Whitney in Turkey.

As the leading helicopter operatorin Turkey, all departments workclosely together and withgovernment and private authorities,aiming to move the companyforward in the aviation sectornationally and internationally. “Staffhave completed related coursesaccording to JAR/EASA and IATAregulations, and all have adopted aservice concept which is one stepahead of our customers’expectations,” says Koc.

As a company, Swan Aviation is seeing growth. Each member of its team is treated with equal importance.

Sancak Air sees growing awareness ofhelicopter charter, particularly for twinengine types.

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Continued on page 14

flights, along with trips for filmingand sightseeing. The company isinvolved in flights for televisionfilming almost every week.

A recent, and nationally veryimportant, project for Sancak Air wasthe filming and broadcasting of theEurasia Marathon in Istanbul, usingthree helicopters installed withCineflex cameras.

More than 100,000 people takepart in the fun run part alone, andthe entire course crosses from Asia to Europe.

With the rapid growth in theTurkish economy over recent years,Yuzgen says: “My observation is thatpeople are preferring larger aircraftsuch as the Gulfstream 550 andGlobal Express. Twin enginehelicopters are likewise receivingmuch greater demand. In recentyears people have become moreconscious about helicopters,especially in Turkey where thechallenging terrain means that twinengine helicopters are in moredemand.”

The vast majority of Sancak Air’sflights are domestic and that is whyhe believes the company has notbeen as badly affected by theeconomic crisis in Europe as someother fixed wing owners. In fact, as

Turkey is a mountainous country,Yuzgen says that helicopter air taxioperators are most likely to benegatively affected by bad weatherconditions.

Levent Acikalin is technical andcommercial director at Antalya-based Adoair that operates a Hawker800 XPI for passenger flights. Acikalinreports that, despite negative effectsdue to the current economic crisis,flight hours have increased this yearwith the increase in air charter mostapparent during the summer season.“Generally, we fly for our own groupcompanies,” explains Acikalin. “Butduring spring and summer time wefly mostly charter for others.”

Wars in Arabic countries such asLibya have been making the greatestimpact on Adoair’s operations.

As far as the company’s staff areconcerned, Acikalin says: “I cannotdistinguish one staff member fromthe others. This is a team and, as weare a small team, everyone must dotheir work excellently.”

One recent trip for an acrobaticmotorcycle group meant that theoutside of the Adoair Hawker wasplastered with stickers to promotethe group. Of course: “The stickerswere removed after the flight!”

Mehmet Yuksel Hocaoglu of SwanAviation says that the restrictions forlanding permits placed by Europeancountries on Turkish-registeredaircraft have a big impact on thecompany’s operations, but overall hehas seen air charter demand growand does not report any detrimental

effects from the economic crisis. Ofthe perceived restrictions, Hocaoglusays: “Even though we apply all EASAregulations, we are not consideredEU aircraft. In other words, we get thepenalty of being EU and we do notget the benefit.”

Swan Aviation has seen flighthours per aircraft increase, even withthe addition of a Hawker 4000 andFalcon 2000LX earlier this year, andadds: “We are confidently growing,partly due to the increased businessand partly because of ourcompetitors’ mishaps...”

Like the majority of therespondents to our survey, Hocaogluagrees that teamwork is vital to asmooth-running company: “Weconsider all of our personnel asimportant and treat them so. Ouroperation is a chain of minoroperations and without one of themwe might fail. Therefore, even theleast important-seeming personnelmight save your day – or make it theworst day ever.”

Hocaoglu reports that there havebeen some technical issues with theHawker 4000, explaining: “HawkerBeechcraft are unable to do anythingat the moment until the aircraftundergoes the so-called block-pointupgrade (a package consistingprimarily of software upgrades andenhancements as well as somehardware modifications).”

Tahe Aviation’s flight operationsmanager Ergun Duruduygu reportsthat flight hours have remained staticthis year at around 400 hours. With

Major business aviation airports*

1. Istanbul Ataturk LTBA IST2. Ankara Esenboga LTAC ESB3. Istanbul Sabiha Gokcen LTFJ SAW4. Izmir Adnan Menderes LTBJ ADB5. Antalya LTAI AYT

* ranked by the number of handler, charter,

maintenance, sales and training organisations

based at each.

Leading fixed-wing charter operators**

1. Tarkim Aviation2. VIPAirTaxi3. Swan Aviation4. Setair5. Arkasair

Leading helicopter charter operators**

1. Doruk Air2. Redstar Aviation3. Betaz Aviation4. Sancak Air5. Kocoglu/Sky Line

** ranked by number of aircraft for charter

Leading maintenance centres***

1. Emair Aviation2. Sky Line3. Top Servis Havacilik4. MNG Technic5. Sancak Air

Data extracted from the Handbook

of Business Aviation in Europe,

and the EBAN reader roster.

Business aviationin Turkey by the numbers

53 business aviation airports

72 business charter operators

15 business aircraftmaintenance organisations

TC 210 business aircraft onthe Turkish register

TURKEYREGIONALREVIEW

Tahe Aviation has managed to maintain the demand for its services this year.

Teamwork is key for Antalya-basedAdoair.

14 DECEMBER 2011 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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Kocoglu Aviation and Skyline have undertaken the mission ofinforming public and private sectorrepresentatives on the opportunities,challenges and the developments of this aviation sector in Turkey. With this aim the Air AmbulanceSymposium was organised, with the cooperation of the Ministry ofHealth of Turkey, in July 2010 inBursa, Turkey.

Following its success, an aviationsummit was held in November thisyear in Bursa, in association withKocoglu Aviation, Skyline andAgustaWestland under the patronageof the Ministry of Transport, GeneralDirectorate of State AirportsAuthority and Directorate General ofCivil Aviation of Turkey. “We are reallyproud of supporting the summit,”says Koc. “We strongly believe thatthis summit is a unique platform forsector representatives to enhance thedialogue and cooperation and solvethe problems of aviation operators.”

Landing and handling fees andfuel prices are the issues which aremost pressing for Esenboga-basedBoydak Air, according to generalmanager captain Hakan Kantas. Thecompany’s Citation 560XLS+ isavailable for passenger charter andflew an increased number of hoursthis year, although Kantas says: “Itsrange is sometimes not enough tooperate across the Middle East andEurope.” The company’s qualitymanager is, according to Kantas, amember of the team who deserves aparticular mention for the importantrole he plays.

Apron Aviation has completedfive medical transportation flightsfrom Libya to Turkey recently. “Wehave conducted intensive caretransfers and flown non-intensive

Forecast foreseesmeasured growthForecast International’s latest studypredicts that 10,907 business jetswill be produced between 2011 and2020, and that business jetproduction will resume growing in2012, after declining in each of theprevious three years.

The report also shows thatbusiness aircraft utilisation is upand the market for used businessjets has stabilised. Economic growthhas returned, though it remainsweak in key regions such as the USand Europe, but corporate profits, akey leading indicator of futurebusiness jet demand, are strong.

EBAA laments EC slot regulationsThe European Business AviationAssociation (EBAA) has voicedconcerns over the EuropeanCommission’s draft regulation forairport slot allocation. TheAssociation is disappointed that theEC, despite robust argumentsagainst, has maintained a recast ofits Slot Regulation based on theSteer Davies Gleave (SDG) study,which predicates the futureallocation of slots based solely onthe number of passengers carried,thus rejecting other fundamentalcriteria.

Euro Jet sees growth Euro Jet has seen a significantincrease in the number of aircraftlooked after in Poland. Euro Jetbegan its Polish operation in 2010,and this year has had growth of200% in the number of flights.

Bell 407GX earns EASAcertificationThe Bell 407GX has earned EASAcertification. The manufacturer saysthat, as the only helicopterequipped with the innovativeGarmin G1000H integrated glassflight deck, it is the most advancedlight, single-engine rotorcraft on themarket.

Gulfstream G650 on courseThe Gulfstream G650 has receivedits provisional type certificate,clearing the way for the company tobegin interior completions readyfor customer deliveries in thesecond quarter of 2012.

GP boosts Al BateenAl Bateen Executive Airportrecorded over 150 business aircraftmovements during the week of theFormula 1 Grand Prix in November,representing a total increase of 58%in movements compared with thesame period for last year’s event.

Eclipse picks up UAEcertificationEclipse Aerospace has been granteda UAE type certificate for the TotalEclipse twinjet, having received fiveorders for the aircraft from UAEcustomers.

Eclipse also offers the Eclipse550, a new production versionscheduled for first deliveries in2013, which will come with state-of-the-art avionics.

New owner is bullish onfuture for D-JETMedrar Financial Group acquired amajority interest in DiamondAircraft Holdings, Canada,including a range of DiamondAircraft’s gasoline powered pistonaircraft and the D-JET programme.

ExecuJet and Shell open in FrankfurtExecuJet and Shell Aviation jointlyopened an FBO facility in Frankfurton December 1st. It has a centrallylocated customer lounge adjacentto the entrance to the GAT, topquality De Sede furniture, aseparate crew area with computer,printer and free internet access. Thebase will be managed by MarcelHellmann.

AMAC to sell PC-12 inMiddle EastPC-12 operator AMAC Aerospacehas been appointed as a salescentre for the aircraft in the MiddleEast, covering Saudi Arabia, UAE,Oman, Yemen, Kuwait, Iraq,Bahrain, Qatar, Syria, Jordan,Lebanon, Egypt and Turkey.

AMAC Aerospace will start itssales activities through a local salesoffice in Beirut, Lebanon as ofJanuary 1, 2012.

JetEx adds real-time flighttrackingFlight support provider JetEx hasintroduced the Flight ExplorerEnterprise Edition, an industry-standard flight tracking solution, toits operations, enabling itsoperations control centre and FBOsto coordinate aircraft movements inreal-time.

The system also allowscustomers to track their own fleetand communicate with the cockpitcrew through a JetEx secured portalthanks to a customised web service.

Athens handler takesUniversal nameAthens-based ground supportprovider, Euro Aviation has beenrebranded as Universal AviationGreece.

I NDUS TRY NEWS . . .

Continued from page 13

care patients and their relatives toIstanbul,” explains generalcoordinator Atilla Uzman. “Duringthose five missions our doctors andmedical technicians put in their bestefforts and we succeeded intransporting 24 intensive carepatients without any difficulties andtransferred them to the Turkishhospitals safely.”

Apron Aviation has providedbrokerage for air ambulance flightsfor many years. “Our service coverstransfers from hospital to hospitalwith accompanying doctors andmedical teams who are caring forpatients during land and airtransportation.

“Our air ambulance service teamreacts immediately. It does notmatter where the patient is or wherethey need to go. Our team willorganise it all, and will not let thatpatient lose precious moments vitalto survival.”

Offices in Ankara, Istanbul andAntalya meet the demand caused bythe high density tourist areas.“During summer and on specialholidays we are alerted to provideEMS service to tourists and Turkishcitizens who are working in Europe,”says Uzman. “So, these offices areready to respond to inquiriesimmediately.”

Monthly, Apron Aviation performsaround 25 EMS flight from theMiddle East to Turkey, from Turkey toEurope and within Turkey. ■

At Quest Helicopters’ launch are ceo Yousef Al Ansari, design director VolodymyrUdovenko, chairman Mahmood Al Ansari, designer Ievgen Kovalov andcommercial director Mike Creed.

TURKEYREGIONALREVIEW

Ready for action; a Boydak Air crew.

Quest unveils ‘clean sheet’ helicopterQuest Helicopters, headquartered in Dubai, has revealed plans for a familyof innovative light twin engine and twin rotor system helicopters.

The Quest AVQ series will be the first civil helicopters to be assembledand manufactured in Umm Al Quwain in the UAE.

The initial four-seat model, priced at US$2.95 million will have a rangeof 435 nm (700 kms), a maximum speed of 185 mph (295 kph), and amaximum endurance of 3.6 hours. VIP versions will be available.

Apron Aviation found itself in Libyarecently, waiting to oversee thetransport of patients.

DECEMBER 2011 15EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS

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S76B1986, N139CC, Airframe hours: 2,364.9.Single pilot IFR. Refurbished 2007 includingnew sound system with 5 Bose Airmen Xheadsets. Aux fuel tanks. OptionalHoneywell and L3 avionics added 2007. Nodamage history. Tel: +1 702 260 3333 AircraftMarketing Ltd.. Web:www.aircraftmarketing.com. Email:info@aircraftmarketing.com

The European Business Aviation Association (EBAA), the leading Association for Business Aviation inEurope, represents more than four hundred and fifty Business Aviation Companies operating over1,000 aircraft. EBAA promotes and supports Business Aviation as an essential sector of Air Transport,serving the Economy and Society.

The EBAA is looking for a MANAGER RULE-MAKING & OPERATIONS

JOB DESCRIPTION

The candidate will:• Monitor EASA rule-making and technical developments affecting aviation operations, licensing and

certification;• Analyse and assess the practical economical and operational implications of safety rule-making for

Business Aviation operators;• Participate in aviation regulatory and technical activities taking place at European and

international institutions, especially those having an impact on Business Aviation;• Steer development of the association policy on technical, safety and operational matters in

cooperation with the association members and the regulators;

PROFILE

The successful candidate shall:• Demonstrate previous experience in Business Aviation operations, together with a thorough

understanding of Business Aviation economic imperatives;• Have technical expertise on the following matters:

1. Commercial and non-commercial OPS rule-making including inter alia flight crew licensing andaerodrome operations;

2. Operation of safety procedures and systems as they relate to modern advanced technologybusiness aircraft;

3. Functioning of EASA and working arrangements.• Excellent written and spoken English. Knowledge of other EU languages is considered an asset;• Be flexible, with a sense of initiative and responsibility. Be able to work independently, but also be

a team worker, capable of integrating and working efficiently within a small team.

The position is full-time based in Brussels.

Applications must be sent to:Carine Jacobs, Chief Administration Officer (cjacobs@ebaa.org) – Reference: Manager Rule-Making

Deadline for application is set on 31st December 2011

BRITISH BUSINESSAND GENERAL

AVIATIONASSOCIATION

Operations &Development ManagerBBGA is the UK’s national trade bodyrepresenting General and BusinessAviation which contributes over £3½ bn to the UK economy.

BBGA is seeking applications for thepost of Operations & DevelopmentManager. The successful applicantwill work with the Chief Executiveinter alia to:-

• Manage the operationalactivities of the associationthrough a small team.

• Develop marketing plans toencourage membership growth.

• Develop revenue generationopportunities through modernmarketing channels.

• Enhance the public role of theAssociation

The successful applicant will ifpossible have experience in theaviation industry, or a similarindustry, together with appropriatecommunication skills and a strongdesire to promote the industry and theinterests of BBGA members.

Further details are available on theBBGA website at www.bbga.aero oremail: anne.seckington@bbga.aero

©2011 HAWKER BEECHCRAFT CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. HAWKER, BEECHCRAFT, AND SUPPORT PLUS ARE TRADEMARKS OF HAWKER BEECHCR AFT CORPORATION.

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