LATEST ISSUE
Summer 2019
On the cover, under the leadership of charismatic Chairman John Matthews, AirX has found success through a unique variety of aircraft and an unusual approach to the charter business. Frequently offering more for the same price, it also has the means to offer more in every sense of the word – few charter aircraft match its VIP A340 in people and weightlifting capability.
Industry heavyweights Benoit Defforge and Mark Burns also join us for this issue. President of Airbus Corporate Jets, Defforge brims with enthusiasm for the ACJ320neo Family, while Erik Scheidt, CEO and Chief Pilot at K5 Aviation is eagerly awaiting entry into service of the ACJ319neo ¬– K5 is taking the first aircraft and Scheidt was on board for a record-breaking endurance trial on 26 March.
Meanwhile, Mark Burns, President of Gulfstream Aerospace, is thrilled with the G500 as it begins proving itself in service, expressing real pride in the technology and precision engineering embodied in the latest Gulfstream products. Nonetheless, in a very frank interview, he delivers a surprising response to the question: ‘Which is your favourite Gulfstream?
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This Summer 2019 edition of Executive & VIP Aviation International takes us once again to the European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition in Geneva. Several of the aircraft on display will have arrived over the weekend from a European Business Aviation Association Sustainable Alternative Jet Fuels Initiative event at TAG Farnborough Airport.
Widely supported by the aircraft OEMs, the event will have seen them burn sustainable fuel on their way to Geneva, bringing competitors together in an effort where the industry at large realises it must keep trying and has to do better.
Often a show of firsts, in recent years EBACE has brought us the launches of Airbus Corporate Helicopters and AVIAÂ, both offering products the industry hadn’t really seen before. Last year we saw the spectacular unveiling of Bombardier’s Global 5500 and 6500 jets, while hullo Aircrew launched its online crewing platform rather more quietly.
Nonetheless, in the 12 months since, it has increased its membership by more than 200% and attracted investment from Jet Aviation. As Edward Cousins, hullo Aircrew’s Director of Business Operations tells us in this issue, it’s a pretty fine result for a start-up.
This year, F/LIST has a first with its new vinyl tile flooring product, bringing new versatility to a traditional material. And that’s really what Scott Group Studio is all about with its custom carpets too, exemplified by its latest Escala collection. Both companies embody business and VIP aviation at its finest, combining traditional craftsmanship with the highest levels of technology, and with customer service always the central theme.
Take A Peek
Featured in this issue
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X marks the (sweet) spot
CEO John Matthews’s alternative view of the private aviation industry has seen him build AirX against the odds. Now, he’s looking to expand the fleet, while simultaneously preparing the company fo...
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Big Skies Open for Business
Africa embraced aviation almost as soon as practical flying machines emerged but, until recently, business aircraft were rare across most of the continent. Now that situation is changing, as Dawit Lem...
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London’s Diverse Alternative
London Oxford Airport offers all the facilities expected of an IS-BAH approved FBO, with easy onward transfer to London and a diverse range of based MROs, operators and service companies. It’s also ...
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Living The Way You Fly
Benoit Defforge, President, Airbus Corporate Jets, presides over some of business aviation’s largest and longest-ranged aircraft, but insists ACJ is all about the solution, not just the platform ...
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Taking the Floor…
F/LIST is recognised for its high-technology solutions to traditional material requirements. Never an organisation to shy away from a challenge, a little over a decade ago F/LIST turned its attention ...
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hullo 3,000…
In the year since it launched its online crewing platform, hullo Aircrew has increased its membership by more than 200%. Now a collaboration with Jet Aviation is opening the door to extensive new deve...
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Starting at Nine…
Mark Burns has been with Gulfstream almost four decades, seen just about everywhere and helped steer the company into the modern era of precision design and manufacturing. He spoke frankly to EVA abou...
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Switzerland’s Optimised Alternative
Bern Airport faces large-scale competition from Basle, Geneva and Zurich, but its carefully managed VIP services, no-slot requirements and easy connections make it an optimal alternative In the sam...
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Tufting a Carpet, Carving a Niche
Employing a modern take on traditional techniques, Scott Group Studio creates custom carpets for the VIP and business aviation community. The possibilities are virtually unlimited, as co-CEO John Hart...
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Advantage: neo
Airbus Corporate Jets recently flew the first example of its ACJ319neo. The aircraft is scheduled for delivery to K5 Aviation, whose CEO and Chief Pilot, Erik Scheidt, joined an Airbus crew to complet...
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