Flying Private Soaring High!

By Rajan Mehra, Chief Executive Officer, Club One Air

The aviation industry, along with hospitality and travel have been hit the hardest due to COVID-19. During April & May months, the global business loss is estimated to be to the tune of 20 billion Dollars. The Indian Aviation industry alone is estimated to crash-land this fiscal by 25,000 crore.

Even during the lockdown period, we kept our wheels moving and evacuated people who were in need, transported sick passengers and operated special flights approved by the Government of India. We have had to innovate-find our way around obstacles, find cleverer ways of doing things, respect social distancing requirements, make sure sanitation was on point. It is extraordinary what our ground handling teams, air crew and support teams including drivers and helpers could accomplish during the lockdown period and aftermath.

The good news for private charter operators is that if Covid pandemic highlighted anything, it is just how much safer and healthier it is it fly private! The luxury of private jet flying, which was typically associated with the rich and famous is now focused on health and safety. With safety becoming paramount in the pandemic stricken world and safety becoming a highly sought-after commodity for the ultra-wealthy, more and more of them are now turning towards private aviation.

WITH SAFETY BECOMING PARAMOUNT IN THE PANDEMIC STRICKEN WORLD AND BECOMING A HIGHLY SOUGHT-AFTER COMMODITY FOR THE ULTRA-WEALTHY, MORE AND MORE OF THEM ARE NOW TURNING TOWARDS PRIVATE AVIATION

As the world’s population begins to slowly return to the skies, commercial aircraft are becoming increasingly crowded, and the alternative appears to be simple – fly private. Now many countries have reopened and the wheels of industry are slowly taking off again, this is the vein in which we must continue to evolve. Safety and hygiene have now become paramount. Being smaller in size, business jets are easier to sanitize and cleaned. Social distancing has become an important factor.

We have adapted to this normal. Our aircraft are now completely sanitized. Our crew medical history is recorded and they wear PPE kits. Crew interface with clients is minimal. We provide masks and sanitizers to every client. All our planes leave and arrive at the new General aviation terminal. This new terminal has made a huge difference for passengers who fly private, as there are no queues, minimum interface with others and a very short distance to cover before you reach in the aircraft! We have discovered that there is a new set of clients who have decided to shift from flying commercial to the inherent, inbuilt safety of flying private. They would not like to put their families and themselves to the risk of the pandemic at a crowded airport environment and a plane full of a few hundred other passengers.

I am confident that private aviation will grow exponentially, given the changing circumstances. Passengers now want to avoid the crowds at terminal buildings and would prefer the spaces available in private aviation terminals. Inside the aircraft there will be a limited number of passengers all known to them and with crew whose medical history is known. Also they would be able to fly non-stop from anywhere to anywhere and to multiple locations on the same day and time.

Another encouraging change we found was that more and more clients are now choosing to fly private for their international trips. These passengers previously restricted their private flying to domestic journeys (for obvious budgetary reasons) but we have seen a very healthy rise in bookings during September and the trend is continuing in October too. In September we recovered back to the September 2019 flying figure and in October we expect to have a healthy 10 per cent increase in the statistic of last October. Going forward we are getting very encouraging enquiries, and the good news is that more and more enquiries for international travel have been coming in. In September and October we have seen a 15-20 per cent increase in international travel and in the coming months, with more and more countries opening their borders, we expect that figure to increase exponentially. Whereas previously our flying ratio was 70 per cent domestic and 30 per cent international, we see that rise to 50:50 in the coming years.

WE EXPECT TO SEE A NEW SEGMENT OF PASSENGERS WHO MAY HAVE BEEN USING FIRST CLASS OR BUSINESS CLASS IN COMMERCIAL AIRLINES BUT WOULD NOW LIKE THE SAFETY, CONVENIENCE AND HYGIENE OF A PRIVATE JET

The commercial airlines will take a long time perhaps over a year to revert back to normal business. People still have apprehension to fly and travelling to different locations. However, private aviation should see an upsurge. Business aviation will be the winner post COVID-19. We expect to see a new segment of passengers who may have been using first class or business class in commercial airlines but would now like the safety, convenience and hygiene of a private jet even though it may be more expensive.

At Club One Air, we pride ourselves in providing global level service standards to our esteemed clients. Club One Air operates a state-of-the-art fleet of business jets which includes five Falcon 2000 aircrafts, one Bombardier CRJ and four Cessna Planes. Over the years we have received accolades and awards from various authorities including The Ministry of Civil Aviation, FICCI, CII, ASSOCHAM and PHD Chambers of Commerce. We have been acknowledged as the Best General Aviation Company in India. We provide our clients with the ultimate, unmatched experience. We ensure the highest standards of luxury, safety, cleanliness and sanitization in our planes. We ensure that the finest selection of meals and delicacies are provided to the clients. Our loyal client base, which includes high network individuals, celebrities, industrialists, politicians and senior government officials are extremely satisfied with our services and have been loyally travelling with us for several years.