The Corporate Jet Investor Podcast

This week we were in the UAE for Corporate Jet Investor Dubai. One of the standout sessions was with Can Şaşmaz, CEO of Falcon. Şaşmaz joined Falcon - the aviation business of Alex Investments in 2024. Falcon is aiming to grow all parts of its business - aircraft charter (Falcon Luxe), FBOs (Falcon Elite), maintenance (Falcon Technic) and trip planning (Falcon Flight Support). But it is not looking for small growth. Şaşmaz wants Falcon to be the world's biggest business aviation. By 2030.

Jamie Walker, executive chairman of Jetlink, recently returned to a more active role after a 2-year break. Jetlink focuses on a local market approach, with private terminals or partnerships in over 20 locations. They have found success in acquiring and integrating smaller local charter operators. However, they have struggled with illegal charter competition in some markets. Walker emphasises Jetlink's commitment to safety and quality, and their plans to continue growing their domestic footprint through organic expansion and strategic partnerships.

The challenges of attracting talent to the business aviation industry have not gone away. Especially for roles like pilots and mechanics. Neil believes there may be a shortage of talent but there is also a shortage of attracting talent.Retaining talent, especially mechanics, can be difficult due to compensation differences compared to commercial aviation. Providing career development opportunities and making employees feel valued are important.There are cultural differences between business aviation and commercial aviation that impact the type of candidates that thrive in each environment. Assessing cultural fit is crucial when hiring.Owners of private aircraft often rely heavily on their pilots' input when selecting aircraft models, showing the importance of the pilot-owner relationship in business aviation.Advice for those looking to enter business aviation includes being proactive, getting exposure to the industry, and being honest about the demands of the work.Thank you Neil for sharing your insights!

Join us this week with Mark Hardman, the founder of the business aviation company RightJet. Mark and Alasdair discuss the company's growth over the past 5 years, including expanding their showroom presence in the UAE and focusing on providing a full suite of services - from aircraft sales and charter to management.Mark shares his extensive background in the industry, having started in aviation 40 years ago at Stansted Airport. He talks about the evolution of business aviation, particularly in the Middle East market, and how RightJet differentiates itself through a focus on ethics, transparency, and delivering exceptional service.Thanks for joining us Mark! 

"It's a relationship business"Ted Farid, Chairman at Jet HQ spoke to us this week about his 50+ year career in the business aviation industry. Ted touches upon the dramatic technological and global changes that the industry has undergone over his career, from the early days of Blackberries to today's ubiquitous connectivity. Evolution of aircraft design, shifting from engineer-focused to more customer-centric as business jets became viewed as "office in the air".Finally, Ted reflects on his favourite aircraft models and the most challenging periods, such as the 2008 downturn and COVID-19.