ExecuJet Aviation has restructured its charter operations in Europe so that customers can call on any of its aircraft, regardless of where they are based. The company has opened a new sales office in London to complement existing centers in Zurich and Moscow and the sales teams are working in tandem to maximize fleet utilization.

“Our sales teams are now able to quote directly for any of our aircraft and they are better positioned to work closely with the leading brokers in key markets like London,” explained the group’s new managing director for Europe Cedric Migeon.

The aim of the change is to offer a more flexible and personalized service as part of a process that has also seen the opening of a new dedicated passenger lounge at London City Airport, close to the new sales office in the UK capital’s Canary Wharf district. ExecuJet has its own aircraft operator’s certificate in the UK, as well as other European AOC operations in Denmark, Germany and Switzerland.

The company recently added a Bombardier Challenger 300 to its fleet, which  is based in Basel, Switzerland, as well as a new Moscow-based Challenger 605 and a Challenger 850 in the Ukrainian capital Kiev. Its charter fleet in Europe now numbers 20 out of 50 aircraft available for hire around the world. Including managed aircraft that are operated exclusively for their owners, the full European fleet now includes 60 jets, with the majority of these being Bombardier models, ranging in size from the Learjet 45 to the Global Express.

“We are seeing two trends in the European charter market,” Migeon told EBACE Convention News. “Demand for larger aircraft has not decreased but customers who had been flying smaller aircraft are generally flying with the airlines again. Also, customers are becoming more demanding, not only in terms of prices but also service quality. They simply won’t take aircraft older than 10 years these days and they know they have a lot of choice at the moment.”

ExecuJet (Booth No. 354) has recently upgraded its airworthiness management status in Europe from CAMO to CAMO PLUS. Since September 2008, all commercial aircraft registered in a member state of the European Aviation Safety Agency have to be managed by a Continuing Airworthiness Management Organisation.

For its operations in Denmark, Germany and Switzerland (but not yet the UK), its approval is now up to full CAMO PLUS status (encompassing Part M Subparts G&I). This means that it can issue airworthiness review certificates for all aircraft registered within an EASA country even if they are not enrolled on one of the company’s own AOCs, which could be helpful for its aircraft management clients.

The operator also now meets the operational standards of both the IS-BAO international standards and the Overseas Territory Aviation Requirements. This is now required for all business aircraft registered in Bermuda. By March 2010, these requirements may also be applied to aircraft on the Cayman Islands register. ExecuJet is able to help the owners of Bermudan-registered aircraft to meet these requirements, including tasks such as preparing aircraft and flight operations manuals.

Migeon said that customers are becoming increasingly careful about which operators they allow to look after their aircraft. They increasingly want to screen management companies for both technical competence and also financial stability.