My Corporate Jet offers an unusual combination of flying experience and personal service. Marketing & Sales Coordinator Erica Lorenzo explains its unique offer
Family-owned My Corporate Jet has carved an unusual niche in the business aviation market, operating a three-aircraft fleet of late-production Sabreliner 65 jets across the Americas and into the Caribbean. Headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina, the company owns all three aircraft, which Marketing & Sales Coordinator Erica Lorenzo says, “…is a huge advantage to the client, because no owner approval is required”. My Corporate Jet also offers aircraft management services.
Aviation enthusiasts will want to fly My Corporate Jet simply because it operates the classic Sabreliner. The type’s heritage goes all the way back to the North American F-86 Sabre, the machine that introduced high-performance, swept-wing jet technology to the US Air Force, although My Corporate Jet’s executive aircraft were among the last off the Sabreliner line, feature fuel-efficient TFE731 turbofan engines and, thanks to constant upgrade, the latest in avionics and safety systems.
My Corporate Jet performs its own maintenance and Lorenzo reports that no major issues have been encountered with avionics or cockpit systems. As well as installing the latest avionics as they become available, Lorenzo says the company has ‘a pretty good stockpile of parts’, which are overhauled and repaired as required. With the Sabreliner relatively rare in service, could other operators benefit from My Corporate Jet’s expertise with the type? “We don’t maintain Sabreliners for other operators,” Lorenzo confirms, “but we could.”
Ramp Presence
On the ramp, the Sabreliner likely looks a little different to even the most disinterested passenger, which makes it an intriguing choice. Lorenzo explains: “We choose to operate the Sabreliner 65 because of its safety features and reliability.” And, although it may look a little quirky on the outside, there’s no doubting the passenger experience on the inside. “We refurbish our interiors regularly to ensure clients travel in the highest level of comfort and luxury possible on every flight. Our passengers range from corporate clients to families going on vacation. We’ve had the occasional celebrity too, but that’s not our typical clientele.”
My Corporate Jet gained its Air Operator’s Certificate in 2014, starting out primarily as a provider of medical evacuation (medevac) flights, but Lorenzo reckons the business has been 50/50 charter and medevac in recent years. Two of the Sabreliners are equipped to take stretchers, with medical care and equipment provided by an FAA- and State-licensed air ambulance operator. The conversion between all-passenger and medevac cabin is rapid.
Unusually, My Corporate Jet also makes good use of the Sabreliners’ useful cargo payload. The aircraft door is too small for a pallet but, Lorenzo says: “The Sabreliner can hold quite a bit and although the door doesn’t really allow for large cargo, we do load medium and small boxes. Our rapid cargo service is mostly for AOG flights.”
And if the opportunity to fly a classic bizjet isn’t enough, Lorenzo says the most important qualities My Corporate Jet has to offer are enhanced customer service and flight safety. “We offer extreme flexibility on scheduling, we are pet friendly and include light catering on all flights.” And the service is personal too. “When someone calls they always deal with me directly, so they can be sure that all their needs will be met.”
Carrying four passengers and their luggage, the Sabreliner 65 can fly about 2,000 nautical miles, ensconcing its customers in the comfort of a regularly updated cabin as it does so. Alongside My Corporate Jet’s superior, personal service, it makes for an enticing offer, but Lorenzo says there are further hidden depths to the company’s charter business.
“The Sabreliners are very reliable, efficient aircraft and because we own three of them, the odds of us cancelling a flight owing to a mechanical issue are extremely slim. The most we’ve ever needed to do is switch tails, but even that has only happened a couple of times. Plus, all of our captains are highly experienced pilots, with thousands of flight hours behind them.”
Finally, the obvious question for all charter operators: How has the COVD‑19 crisis affected business? Lorenzo is refreshingly candid. “April and May were difficult, but business started to pick up in June and it’s been pretty steady since. Most of our work during the pandemic has been passenger charters. We’ve had lots of repatriation flights, both for US citizens and foreign nationals wanting to go home. Now, corporate trips seem to be up as do family vacations although, to be honest, we don’t really ask why people are chartering the flight.” It’s further evidence, as if needed, of My Corporate Jet’s unusual, discrete, customer-orientated approach, combining classic flying with personal service.