JUSTIN WASTNAGE / LONDON
Regional arm of Bombardier's offshoot close to launching hourly-fractional programme
Flexjet Europe is preparing to launch its new hybrid charter/fractional programme on 7 February. The Bombardier subsidiary announced in December that it was pulling out of fractional operations in Europe (Flight International, 18 December 2001).
Flexjet Europe has closed its Copenhagen operations base, where its fleet now sits in Execujet Scandinavia's hangars. All operational staff, including pilots, have been made redundant.
Charles Porteous, marketing director for Flexjet Europe, says that only "key staff" will be relocated to the new headquarters near London's Heathrow airport. Zurich, Switzerland, will be the base for a newly-appointed central European sales team.
Porteous says Bombardier has realised that the European market is different from the USA and needs a different model. "[Europeans] want newer aircraft and a greater variety of models. They want to own hours, not a share of an aircraft," he says.
The company is finalising talks with several European charter operators, including Aero Dienst, Execujet, Gold Air and Jet Connection for the use of 20 Bombardier business jets based throughout the continent.
Flexjet Europe has contracted Reading, UK-based Wyvern Aviation Consulting to conduct European Joint Aviation Authorities' JAR OPS1 audits on charter operators to ensure they meet Flexjet standards.
The company is thought to have had difficulty selling more than 300h worth of shares in the Bombardier Challenger 604s in Europe. The new programme will feature newer versions of the Bombardier Learjet 31, 45 and 60.
Under the new scheme, customers will pay a monthly management fee, covering pilots, hangar space and the capital cost of the aircraft, on top of a variable hourly rate.
Bombardier launched a charter programme in Asia late last year, covering China, Hong Kong and the Philippines initially. Russ Lawton, operations director of Wyvern says that it is also to conduct similar audits on charter operators for Bombardier in South-East Asia later this year.
Source: Flight International
