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With the knockout phase of FIFA World Cup having started on Saturday, Middle East-based flight support companies are warning tournament-goers about an extra layer of unpredictability through the final match on December 18. “We knew which national teams were playing in the group stages, but we didn’t know who will make it to the knockout phase,” said Henry LeDuc, head of strategy development at UAS International Trip Support. “This means there were a lot of pre-planned flights already for the group stage. Ad hoc flights will rapidly build from countries whose teams advance to the next round.” Some 48 matches took place in the group phase, which ran from November 20 to December 2, with qualifiers playing only 16 more. Tom Murphy, head of FBOs and aircraft management specialist at Gama Aviation Sharjah, told AIN that demand ramp-up starting with the knockout will only soar higher with the quarter-final, semi-final, and final games. “Charters are going to be very challenging for ad hoc at the last minute,” he said. “Given the restrictions for gaining access to Qatar, you need a minimum of 72 hours’ notice for a flight. You also need a hire car, as proof that you’ve got a match ticket. Last-minute charter is going to be very difficult.” To meet expected spikes in demand, several aircraft charter companies in the region—including Qatar Executive, Empire Aviation Group, Jet Aviation, and ExecuJet—are making extra aircraft available to tournament-goers on charters and shuttles. UAE-based Royal Jet and Jetex signed a partnership early last month to operate on-demand 30-seat private jet flights between Dubai and Doha for the duration of the competition. Royal Jet operates the world’s largest fleet of Boeing Business Jets and announced the acquisition

Celebrating its 15th year of operations this week at MEBAA 2022, management specialist Empire Aviation Group (Static S4; EAG) has seen its charter business triple since 2019, it said on the eve of the biennial Middle East business aviation show. “Our movements as a company today are up 200 percent over 2019,” EAG founder and managing director Paras Dhamecha told AIN. “If you look at the number of airplanes coming in and out of the region, I would think that, overall, movements have increased strongly.” The VIP Terminal at Al Maktoum International Airport (OMDW) has been the focus of business aviation activity. “If you visualize where earlier aircraft were parked—basically two rows along the length of the ramp of the VIP Terminal area—today, we’ve got aircraft stacked about five rows deep on the sides. Obviously, there are substantial movements, but I’m not aware of the actual numbers.” He said the company tracked the type and number of movements of aircraft under its management, but not the overall market. Several industry participants have said that the lack of clarity from the authorities on business aviation movements at Dubai’s airports hampers business planning. Relocation specialists South Africa’s Henley & Partners have identified the UAE as the leading global destination for ultra-high-net-worth individuals and expected 4,000 millionaires to move there this year alone. “The UAE still has this huge concentration on becoming a global hub for business aviation,” Dhamecha said. “It’s going really well. Dubai looked like it was number two or three in terms of overall growth and movements during the pandemic. “Obviously, the borders were open, so there was a lot more movement. The growth trajectory has been exponential. Support from the government continues to grow.

While the Middle East represents only about 5 percent of general aviation worldwide, the region is poised for growth given its size, the different businesses that exist, and the fact that companies typically have dealings in several countries in the region and increasingly have to connect to Europe, the U.S., and Asia. That’s according to Dassault Aviation international sales director Renaud Cloâtre, who is based in Dubai. “Growth potential is enormous because the region is underequipped,” Cloâtre said. “If you look at general aviation’s structure in Europe or the U.S., there’s clear growth potential in the Mideast. We are in an economy where the energy market is actually changing relations between Europe, the U.S., and the Middle East. The value of oil is increasingly recognized. Oil prices are increasingly relevant, underlining oil’s true value. It’s needed. There is also a requirement to use it wisely and not burn too much. “Regional transition, as you’ve seen in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as in other countries, is taking place. The UAE has changed over the past 10 years. Change has taken place all over the region. When you move towards change, you need the tools for it, and business jets are one of them.” He said the Falcon 7X—of which Dassault sold six to Saudia Private Aviation—has been a tremendous success. “The 7X and 8X are fantastic aircraft, going all the way from here to continents. People in Saudi Arabia love three-engine aircraft. They love the stability of fly-by-wire. The Saudi market is very complex, in terms of actors and operators. It’s a big country, a big domestic market; it’s distance they need. “Again, if you look at all the missions general aviation can

Demand was strong "across the board" for all of Textron Aviation's aircraft models in the third quarter of 2021, Textron Inc. CEO Scott Donnelly told analysts on an earnings call Thursday. (Photo: AIN/Barry Ambrose) Textron Aviation reported substantial increases in revenue, profit, deliveries, and backlog during the third quarter, propelled by a higher Cessna Citation and Beechcraft King Air volume of $338 million and aftermarket volume of $62 million. The results represented what Textron Inc. CEO Scott Donnelly said on an earnings call Thursday was “very strong demand” for business aircraft. “All of the dynamics that we look at in terms of the macro-level of the market are extremely favorable,” he said. Revenue at the Wichita airframer increased $386 million from the year-ago quarter, to $1.2 billion, while profit of $98 million erased a $29 million loss during the same period last year. Deliveries for the quarter were sharply higher, rising to 49 jets compared with 25 in last year’s third quarter. Turboprop deliveries also jumped 67 percent to 35 in the same period. For the first nine months of the year, Textron Aviation's revenue was $3.2 billion compared with $2.41 billion in 2020 while profit was $241 million, up from a $92 million loss a year ago. Backlog at the end of the quarter was $3.5 billion, which Jeffries analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu noted on the call was at a level last seen in 2010. Donnelly said the higher backlog—which grew by $721 million from the second quarter of 2021—supports the company’s expectations for returning in 2022 to a production level last seen in 2019. “And there’s probably room for a little bit beyond that,” Donnelly added. What’s more, that backlog represents nine to 12

In a report to investors titled “Bizjet Party Time is Now,” analysts at investment bank Cowen see a number of factors improving fortunes for the next couple of years for the business jet industry and, in particular, for OEMs Gulfstream Aerospace and Textron Aviation. “The combo of Covid concerns, a robust stock market, and firming economy are creating the strongest business jet environment since 2007,” the report said. Analysts noted the inventory of used business jets for sale reached an “all-time low” of 4.5 percent of the fleet while the 275,000 business jet departures in May—led by fractional and charter operators—were near the October 2019 peak of 278,000. With demand driven by ultra-high-net-worth individuals and an increase in first-time buyers, that should push them toward the purchase of new business jets. OEMs likely won’t see the fruits of that demand on deliveries because of production lead times until 2022 “and possibly 2023,” according to the report. “Also, Fortune 500 customers are just starting to perk up, and foreign buyers have yet to return,” the report added. “Thus, the demand surge likely still has runway.” As for the OEMs, Gulfstream “looks best positioned in bizjets” because preowned jet demand is highest in the large-cabin category. In addition, increasing G500 and G600 deliveries and the fourth-quarter 2022 entry-into-service of the G700 are pluses for Gulfstream, the report added. At the lighter end of the market, Cowen analysts see a strong second-quarter 2021 book-to-bill for Textron Aviation and a “solid sales lift” in 2022, potentially extending into 2023. However, the report said, “demand durability is a bigger issue for smaller business jets, and [Textron Aviation] has a less compelling product story than [Gulfstream].” Lastly, the report added that OEMs

Bombardier Hands Over First Indonesia-based Global 7500 Bombardier’s Global 7500 has entered the Indonesian market with the first delivery of one of the company’s flagship business jets to an undisclosed customer based in Jakarta. The worldwide Global 7500 fleet now exceeds more than 50 aircraft, a milestone reached in March, about 2.5 years after the model entered service in late 2018. Indonesia marks the latest Asia-Pacific region expansion for the Global 7500, an aircraft model that is also based in Japan, Australia, Taiwan, and Malaysia. Bombardier noted that its entire portfolio is generating strong interest in the region. Calling the 7500 aircraft “ideally suited to customers in the Asia-Pacific region who are looking to connect far-flung city pairs,” Nilesh Pattanayak, Bombardier regional v-p of sales for Asia-Pacific, said, “The ultra-long-range Global 7500 aircraft opens up a world of possibilities for convenient and productive travel.” With a 7,700-nm range, the Global 7500 can fly nonstop from Jakarta, Indonesia, to Seattle, from Singapore to San Francisco, from Tokyo to New York, and from Melbourne, Australia, to Los Angeles, Bombardier said. As its presence expands in Asia-Pacific, Bombardier has been growing its customer-service footprint in the region with a new customer-service center expected to open in 2022 at Essendon Fields Airport in Melbourne, Australia, alongside the ongoing project at its Singapore service center, which will quadruple the operation’s space there. Bombardier’s highly anticipated flagship Global 7500 entered into service December of 2018. The Global 7500 is the world’s largest purpose-built business jet. Its first flight took place on November 4, 2016. Flight testing was completed in August 2018, with over 2,400 hours logged by the five prototypes. In September of 2018, it received type certification from Transport Canada,

Argus May 2021 data showed that the midsize jet category marked the largest resurgence in Europe, up 227.8 percent year-over-year. Business aviation activity showed a sharp rebound across all categories in May in Europe with an overall 156.7 percent increase from a year earlier, when traffic had slowed to a trickle as the pandemic took root, according to the latest Argus TraqPak report. Argus May 2021 data showed that the midsize jet category marked the largest resurgence in Europe, up 227.8 percent year-over-year. Looking at super-midsize jets alone, that increase is even greater at 282.5 percent. Activity was up 197.7 percent for “base” midsize jets. As for the other categories, large-jet activity increased 213.7 percent, while light-jet operations experienced a 168.1 percent rebound. Turboprops, meanwhile, marked an 83.8 percent increase year-over-year, almost mirroring the 83.7 percent increase they experienced in April. Single-engine turboprops drove this gain in May, up 135.2 percent with multi-engine turboprops posting a more modest 59.3 percent increase in the month—the only category to come in under triple-digit gains. May business aviation activity in Europe came in 39 percent higher than April and marked increases across all categories. Light-jet activity led the monthly increase at 53 percent with large jets up 33.5 percent and midsize jets higher at 48.5 percent. Turboprop activity further posted a 24.3 percent increase. Argus expects business aviation activity to be up year-over-year by 52 percent in June. Source: AIN

Embraer's Medevac Cabin for Phenom 300 features a convertible medevac cabin. (Photo: Embraer) Part 135 operator GrandView Aviation will be Embraer’s launch customer for a convertible Medevac Cabin for Phenom 300 interior STC that the Brazilian airframer developed for its Phenom 300 light twinjet. “With the Phenom 300MED conversion, our aircraft can transition from a passenger cabin interior to Medevac Cabin for Phenom 300 in a matter of hours, allowing for maximum operational efficiency,” said GrandView COO Jessie Naor. “We already operate diverse missions, and the Phenom 300MED further adds to our ability to meet a wide variety of client needs.” Medevac Cabin for Phenom 300 Aerolite provides the equipment for the Embraer Phenom 300MED's cabin. (Photo: Embraer) Aerolite will provide the equipment for the Phenom 300MED’s medevac interior. The installation will be performed at Embraer’s service center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. “We are sure this will be the first of many conversions around the world,” said Marsha Woelber, Embraer Service & Support’s head of worldwide executive jets customer support and aftermarket sales. Baltimore-based GrandView owns 10 Phenom 300s as well as Sikorsky S-76D and Bell 407GXi helicopters. Medevac Cabin for Phenom 300 is available at AirCharter.com for Air Ambulance services.