Since last year’s EBACE show, two well-known names in Toulouse’s business aviation industry– Aero Vision and Uni Air Entreprise–have been integrated in a new group called Jet Services (Booth No. 1069). Aero Vision specializes in passenger charter flights and air-to-air photography, while Uni Air is an EASA Part 145 maintenance and modification facility. Also part of the group is Advanced Air Support, a handling company, and Camo Air Support, an airworthiness management specialist.

Today, Aero Vision’s executive charter fleet includes four jets– three Cessna Citation IIs and one CitationJet–and one turboprop, a Beechcraft King Air 200. It is set to add a Dassault Falcon 20 twinjet, the cabin of which was refurbished in 2008. In 2009 Aero Vision operated three aircraft, which logged a combined 1,300 flight hours. The expansion of the fleet to six aircraft is expected to bring annual flight hours to 2,400 this year.

Air-to-air photography and cinematography, performed with a modified Aerospatiale Corvette, accounts for an annual 90 flight hours. The photography missions employ Imagin’Air, an automated camera system developed in house that can be used at high speeds, up to 300 knots. More stabilized systems exist but are not suited to jet speeds because they are mounted in a big external sphere. Imagin’Air requires only a small periscope and the camera operator uses two joysticks to control the camera movement (for either still images or movies). The joysticks control parameters such as roll, zoom and focus with a 360-degree field of view.

Sister company Uni Air is planning this year to expand its capability to maintain the Falcon 50EX, 2000EX and 900EX. It already services the Falcon 50, 2000 and 900, up to C checks. It also maintains Hawker Beechcraft and Piaggio aircraft.

Uni Air’s expansion plans also include moving part of its operation at Paris Le Bourget Airport to a new facility this year. This move to Hangar K1 will increase the company’s space at LGB to 75,000 sq ft. Its workforce also continues to expand–from 70 in 2007 to 150 this year.