Aircraft fractional ownership is a concept that has been slow to take hold in Latin America, most likely the result of an installed business aircraft customer base too small to support such an effort. But it is growing.

One of the more established fractional ownership programs in Latin America is MexJet, a business unit of long-time Mexican aviation services provider Aerolínas Ejecutivas.

The company has a total of 24 aircraft, 22 of them jets: Hawker 400s, 700s and 4000s, and Learjet 45s. In addition, it offers two helicopters: an Agusta 109 Power and an Agusta 109 Grand.

The company’s headquarters is in Toluca; it also has bases in Bajío, Culiacán, Mérida and Monterrey. With a total of 140 customers, including members of its JetCard program, MexJet has five hangars at Aeropuerto Internacional deToluca, in the city of Toluca, not far from Mexico City. Maintenance facilities are in one of the hangars, where Beechcraft provides service and support for its products. The operator is certified by independent-audit bodies Wyvern and IS-BAO. “Safety and security are not negotiable,” said MexJet director Alexis Javkin.

According to Javkin, MexJet has experienced 10- to 15-percent growth over the past several years, “better than the 8- to 10-percent growth of comparable companies.”

MexJet offers one-eighth, one-quarter and one-half shares in its fractional program, with buy-in and other costs determined by the value of the particular aircraft at the time, based on its age, model and total flight hours. A one-eighth share typically entitles the shareholder to 100 flight hours a year.

The company’s JetCard program offers two-year memberships, with 50 to 200 flight-hour cards available. It allows customers to fly a lesser number of hours without a major investment.

In 2012, MexJet few 10 percent more hours than in 2011 and, based on activity in the first half of this year, Javkin said he expects 2013 will be better.

Approximately 75 percent of the company’s flights are within Mexico, with the remainder to destinations in Central America and the U.S.

Prime Fraction Club

In Brazil, Prime Fraction Club is growing steadily with a fleet that includes a mix of nine fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, three yachts and four high-end automobiles.

But Prime has taken the “share” concept a step further. Not only can a shareholder in one aircraft use hours in another aircraft–fixed-wing or helicopter– but it is also possible to apply share hours in a high-end yacht. It’s part of what differentiates the São Paulo-based company from other fractionals–a share of one entitles the member to a share of all, explained Prime president and founder Marcus Matta.

The cost structure is similar to most other fractional ownership programs, whether in Brazil, the U.S. or Europe. A one-quarter share in an Agusta 109S Grand, for example, requires an initial buy-in of R$3.445 million, monthly fees are R$34,724 and a variable fee per flight hour begins at about R$2,774. There is no wait charge or repositioning fee.

The fleet is based in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, and the most frequent destinations are major industrial cities and beach locales within the country.

Avantto Flying High in Brazil

The largest fractional operator in Latin America, and the largest in Brazil as well, is Avantto. Since its creation in 2010 by president Rogério Andrade, the São Paulo-based company’s fractional share membership has jumped from 350 to nearly 400, with a one-tenth share being the most popular. And the fleet has grown from 24 jets and 23 helicopters a year ago to 28 jets and 25 helicopters as of mid-July.

Among the fixed-wing additions to the managed fleet is a Challenger 605, a business jet capable of nonstop flight from Rio de Janeiro to Miami, or from Rio de Janeiro to any destination in Latin America with ease.

From 2011 to 2012, the company has experienced a 25-percent revenue growth and, this year, even with a slowing Brazilian economy, said Rogério, “We still expect growth of between 20 and 25 percent.”

The slow redistribution of wealth in Brazil is one factor driving the growth of fractional ownership in the country; that, and an aviation infrastructure such that only about 100 out of 5,000 cities are served by airlines.

Avantto offers only one-third shares in its fixed-wing program. As an example, the one-time buy-in cost in a Phenom 100 is $1.38 million, entitling the shareholders to 20 flight hours a month at $1,540 an hour. A monthly fixed fee of $21,650 covers crew, insurance, hangar lease, management and maintenance.

The company also operates an aircraft management program, which accounts for about 30 percent of annual revenues. And, as only about 200 of the more than 1,500 business aircraft in Brazil are currently under an aircraft management contract, Rogério suggests that this part of the company is likely to see greater growth than fractional ownership.

Rogério is also considering a fractional partnership from outside Brazil. There is an on-going discussion with a group from the Philippines about the possibility of launching an operation similar to that of Avantto in that Pacific island nation. “And we’ve been doing some flights with potential partners closer to home, pending a formal agreement,” he said.

Like Andrade, Prime’s Matta sees smooth skies ahead for fractional operations in Brazil. While three fixed-wing airplanes is not a large fleet, the company has on order another Phenom 100, a Phenom 300 and a Pilatus PC-12C. In addition, helicopter orders include a Robinson R66 and a Eurocopter AS350 B3E, as well as an AW109S Grand and an AgustaWestland AW109 Power.

Fractional ownership, said Matta, “is the better way to satisfy professional needs and/or leisure moments without paying for the whole asset.”