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Positive Response from Mideast Market

DUBAI — The ExecuJet Aviation Group, an exclusive sales agent for Aerion Supersonic Business Jet, said the Middle East and subcontinent region accounted for more than a third of the orders the 12-seat passenger plane has won.

The Swiss-based company said at the Dubai Airshow that it was quite encouraged by the enthusiasm shown by potential customers at the event.

“We see the first early signs of an upturn after what has been an unprecedented decline in business aircraft flying in this region as a result of the global economic crisis,” said Andrew Hoy, Managing Director of ExecuJet group said on Monday.

He said the airshow would act as a spur for the region’s aviation sector that had been hit to a lesser extent compared to other regions. Hoy said that there were already more than 50 buyers for the Aerion supersonic plane that would come into service in 2015.

Aerion launched its formal marketing efforts at the 2007 Dubai Air Show where it began accepting letters of intent, or LOIs, to purchase the $80 million Aerion supersonic business jet, each backed by a $250,000 refundable deposit.

Hoy said he received one order for Aerion Supersonic jet at the airshow. Aerion has approximately 50 LOIs representing a backlog of $4 billion.

“More than one-third of orders are from customers in the Middle East, India and Pakistan. The remainder is distributed between Europe and the Americas,” Hoy said at the ExecuJet stall where a model of the supersonic jet is displayed.

Prince Nikolaos, advisor to the Board of ExecuJetArcraft Trading, who was also in Dubai to attend the show said he was quite excited about the product.

“I believe the Aerion supersonic jet is rightly positioned to meet the more demanding requirements of the modern business and corporate market,” he said.

The Zurich-based group, which manages 150 business jets worldwide under the most stringent safety standards, offers a range of services including pre-owned and new aircraft sales, aircraft management for private and commercial registered aircraft, aircraft charter, aircraft maintenance, aircraft completions management and fixed base operations.

Hoy said Aerion, an advanced aeronautical research organisation, required the participation of a large original equipment manufacturers, or OEM, skilled in bringing new aircraft to the market. The company is in discussions aimed at entering into a 9-12 month technical assessment phase, during which Aerion and its partner or partners will jointly study all aspects of taking Aerion’s aerodynamic design through a successful certification effort. Aerion expects that this phase will culminate with the launch of a five-year development and certification programme.

“We are also encouraged by continuing strong customer interest in the airplane, particularly in the Middle East.”

“It is therefore clear to us and to the OEMs with whom we are in discussions that the Aerion jet is the only practical path to supersonic flight by the middle of the next decade.”

“We’ve had the ability to fly supersonically for 60 per cent of the history of powered flight. Now we have the opportunity to do it in a commercially feasible, environmentally responsible way. As the industry returns to financial stability and as optimism returns, we will see the Aerion programme progress rapidly,” said Hoy.

The ExecuJet entity in the Middle East began in1999 with a couple of managed aircraft and now boasts a managed fleet of over 20 aircraft. “In the Middle East, we have progressively expanded capabilities in aircraft maintenance and technical support over the past 10 years in business,” Hoy said.

This year ExecuJet Middle East added two privately run aircraft to its managed fleet, including a Global XRS and Challenger 605. The company is now looking to enhance the charter proposition by adding additional aircraft over the coming months.

Hoy said his group was pleased with the success of its new SimplyFly Membership Card since its launch earlier this year. The programme, which is designed to create a more time effective and convenient approach to chartering an aircraft, has been implemented in all ExecuJet regions with already notable success in South Africa, Europe and the Middle East, he said.

issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com