Fast growing European fractional operator Jetfly will more than double its fleet of high-speed executive turboprops after announcing a number of orders here yesterday.

Jetfly president Jacques Lemaigre du Breuil yesterday signed deals for four Piaggio Avanti II twin-turboprops, four EADS Socata TBM 850s to supplement the three TBM 700s already in service and six Pilatus PC-12 single-engine turboprops to add to the seven already in service. A further PC-12 was ordered earlier and will join the fleet in November. Delivery of both types is set for 2008 and 2009.

Jetfly, formed in 2000, is growing at a rate of 50 percent a year, said du Breuil, both in terms of co-owners (currently 70) and hours flown. “We fully expect to place more orders before the next EBACE,” he said. “These are likely to be the same types of aircraft.”

The operator favors high-speed turboprops because, said du Breuil, “they are perfectly adapted to the European environment.” He pointed to the average 1.5-hour trip and the typically shorter runways than in the U.S. as reasons. “There are 2,200 airports in Europe and if we operated jets our co-owners would only be able to access 700 of them.” Turboprops also consume less fuel, he adds, and “cost around half as much to operate.”