US operator PlaneSense has launched its Pilatus PC-24 fractional ownership programme, as it prepares to take delivery of the first aircraft – serial number 101 – later this year.
The Portsmouth, New Hampshire-based company is the launch customer for the superlight business jet, which is on track to receive European and US certification in the fourth quarter.
PlaneSense is also the world’s largest commercial operator of the PC-12NG single-engined turboprop, with a fleet of 35 aircraft.
“We could only have six PC-24s from the first order round,” says PlaneSense president and chief executive George Antoniadis, a reference to the popularity of the PC-24, which is dubbed a “super-versatile jet” by Pilatus because of its short-runway performance and ability to land on unpaved strips.
When the orderbook for the clean-sheet aircraft was opened in 2014, Pilatus sold the first tranche of 84 units – three years’ worth of production – within hours.
PlaneSense
With demand for the Williams International FJ44-4A-powered aircraft so high, the Swiss airframer is likely to reopen the orderbook following certification.
“As soon as they do, we will gobble up more aircraft to the tune of around four a year,” Antoniadis says. “We are sure this programme will be a success, as there is nothing like the PC-24 on the market.”
PlaneSense will take delivery of one aircraft in 2017, two in 2018 and three in 2019. Shares in the PC-24 are available in a range of fractions starting at $685,000 for a one-sixteenth stake. This entitles the owner to 50 flying hours a year. On top of the acquisition price, shareholders pay a monthly management fee – $8,900 for a one-sixteenth share – and an occupied hourly fee of $2,320.
In July 2015 the company introduced the Nextant 400XTi into its fleet as its interim business jet product. It now has three units and plans to add a fourth this year. The remanufactured light twins are not split into fractions, but used by owners who need to travel longer distances than the PC-12 will allow, says Antoniadis. “Our current plan is to keep the XTis until we have built up a core fleet of PC-24s,” he adds.
PlaneSense
Now in its 21st year, PlaneSense is one of the oldest fractional ownership programmes in the world. It plans to add up to five PC-12NGs in 2017 to satisfy the growing demand for the product.
Antoniadis attributes the company’s popularity and longevity to its “consistent approach to selling fractional shares and a focus on providing high levels of service and safety at sensible overhead costs”.
Source: Flight International
