Royal Jet, the world's biggest Boeing Business Jets operator, is preparing to introduce the second of a pair of new 34-seat BBJs, taking the Abu Dhabi operator's fleet of the type to eight.
The near-identical duo - one or both of which could make an appearance at the MEBAA business aviation show in Dubai from 6-8 December - have just returned from completion at Lufthansa Technik in Hamburg. According to Rob DiCastri, Royal Jet’s new chief executive, the airliner-derived jets will “generate new markets” with a constituency of business travellers who want to fly on the latest product. The 32-seat layout “also plays very well in this market,” he says.
The oldest of Royal Jet's six other BBJs is 17 years old and the company has put two of them up for sale. However, DiCastri maintains Royal Jet would be happy to retain them for the time being. “The aircraft are still popular and in reasonable shape. We’ve done soft refurbishments on them,” he says. “In years past, we might have struggled with aircraft that age, but the current market is more accepting to fly on aircraft that are a bit older for a bit less money.”
Royal Jet also has two Bombardier Learjet 60s and a Gulfstream G300, used mainly for medevac, but also plans to offload these aircraft, possibly with a view to taking them back on a management contract, as DiCastri maintains it is difficult to guarantee the utilisation to justify owning such specialised aircraft.
Source: Flight International