VistaJet goes for the treble chance VistaJet goes for the treble chance

6 JUNE 2008 EUROPEAN BUSINESS AIR NEWS
Lufthansa launches ‘phone and fly’ point-to-point private
jet service to dovetail with intercontinental first class
Lufthansa pledges that booking its
private jets could not be made any
easier. “It is very simple, just a ‘phone
call,” says Dr. Gerald Wissel, global
head, Lufthansa Private Jet (LPJ)
which was officially launched on 1
June this year. “The credit card
generates an electronic ticket. This
ticket is the contract between
Lufthansa and client and this
contract is completely valid under
European law. In fact, as a passenger,
you have many more rights with this
“airline’ ticket than with a charter
contract.” Wissel also pledges that
there will be one price for each pointto-point
travel within Europe.
Lufthansa showcased a private jet
service aircraft, a CJ3, at EBACE but it
will be one of nine aircraft entering
LPJ service in the coming months.
The airline will also utilise the aircraft
of private charter partners who will
include DC Aviation. Cabin size and
luggage capacity were among the
selection priorities. LPJ says seven
Citations will fly point-to-point in
Europe and Russia will be served by
two Canadair CRJ200s converted to
Challenger 850 configuration.
“The clients are essentially
corporate customers who want
a one-stop shop for their requirements,”
Wissel adds. “They want
point-to-point travel coordinated
with first-class scheduled travel.
We will provide everything they
need including limousine transfer
as necessary.”
Lufthansa intends that the private
jet service mentality is found in First
Class as well. Wolfgang Mayrhuber,
chairman of Lufthansa’s executive
board, says: “First Class guests who
spend many days of the month
aboard an aircraft and at airports
expect to be able to decide for
themselves how they spent their time.
We would like to create an
environment similar to that of a
journey by private jet.”
He adds: “Passengers arriving on
long haul flights in Frankfurt, Munich
and Zurich can conveniently take a
private jet to fly on to their final
destination, connecting to more than
LPJ clients will be ushered through the formalities and can take a limousine across the tarmac to their private jet.
1,000 airports throughout greater
Europe. The private jet service can
also be used for point-to-point flights
between European airports.”
Mayrhuber claims: “LPJ complements
Lufthansa’s worldwide
network by adding up to 1,000
individualised flight options.”
He says that all clients will be
looked after by their own personal
assistant. “In the background an
events manager coordinates the
journey before and during the flight
and also takes care of any of the
clients’ individual requests.”
At Frankfurt, Munich and Zurich,
passengers arriving aboard Lufthansa
long haul flights are taken through
formalities by the personal assistant
and can be directly limousinechauffeured
across the tarmac to the
LPJ aircraft. Seamless transit of
MAZ Aviation chairman Mohammed Al-Zeer (centre) finalises the XWB deal with Airbus
evp Eduoard Ullmo (left) and svp Christian Robach.
Saudi Arabian clients confirm
the first Prestige orders
Saudi Arabian private customers
have ordered six A350 XWB Prestiges
through MAZ Aviation. “The kind of
private customer that buys a vip
widebody wants the very best,” says
MAZ Aviation chairman Mohammed
Al Zeer. “The A350 XWB offers more
cabin space, more range and a more
modern design.”
All six XWBs will feature vip
cabins and be powered by Rolls-
Royce Trent XWB engines but the
choice of cabin outfitters has yet to
be announced. Al Zeer says it is the
first agreement signed for this type
of aircraft in the Middle East. Selling
points included the XWB’s range
enabling it to fly non-stop to the
world as well as the wide cabin and
extra floor space. Other pluses
included the advanced and efficient
aerodynamic design with more
than 50 per cent of the airframe is
made up of weight-saving carbon
fibre composites.
Airbus coo customers, John Leahy
says: “The deal is the largest single
deal ever for Airbus corporate
jetliners, and comprises one A350-
800 and five A350-900s.”
Wolfgang Mayrhuber: 1,000 bespoke
flight options.
baggage is part of the deal.
Lufthansa actually began ferrying
first-class passengers from airline
hubs to their final destination but it
says feedback confirms they want a
point-to-point service. This was a
different concept to the service that
was provided by NetJets and
DC Aviation will expand its Airbus
Corporate Jet fleet to four as it
simultaneously builds its already
sizeable all-round fleet. The Stuttgart
operator, the first confirmed selected
partner for Lufthansa Private Jet,
will become the largest operator
of ACJs in the German business
aviation market, according to ceo
Dieter Heinen.
“Our goal is to become the largest
premium operator of private jets in
Europe. With the purchase of the first
Airbus 319 CJ, We are giving the green
light for further corporate jets on this
scale”, Heinen adds.
The company’s first Airbus 319 CJ
was previously in operation for the
Daimler corporation but is now
being offered exclusively by DC
Aviation for executive charter
market. Three more Airbus of
type 319 CJ fitted to take up to 22 vips
will be added to the fleet over the
next 12 months and will most likely
be operated in Europe and the
Middle East.
Heinen says: “Apart from
comfortable business seating for 48
passengers and generous seat pitch
of 152 cm, the ACJ excels especially
when it comes to long haul flights
with its maximum cruising range of
Lufthansa decided to offer its own
operation. DC Aviation, which was
used to meet some of the demand,
and will be among the few selected
partners as Lufthansa responds to
what it says is growing demand.
Lufthansa reports that the
number of private jet flights operated
in 2007 rose by 26 per cent.
“Customer demand strongly
outstripped capacity over the year by
an average of around 25 per cent and
in peak months by as much as 60 per
cent,” says Wissel.
Demand for aircraft, especially
mid to large accommodating seven to
12 people, rose disproportionately in
the past year, Wissel adds. “It was
strongest among customers from
Germany, Scandinavia, France and
Italy, who used the LPJ service
primarily for point-to-point flights.”
up to 4,320 n.m. Four additional
tanks make it possible for the
Execuliner to fly nonstop in 9 hours,
for instance from London to Chicago
or from Munich to Bangalore.”
He adds: “Our many years of
transatlantic operational experience
with the A319 CJ and the great
demand for this type of aircraft, is the
key reason for our further expansion
in this market.”
But Heinen says the expansion of
the fleet is not restricted to the A319.
“We are building up our capacities
from the Learjet to the Airbus. In
2008 alone we expect a total of 12
new additions of the types G550,
G450, G150, Challenger 850, Legacy
600, Citation XLS and Learjet 40.”
Stefan Buschle, md, says: “With
our extremely young modern fleet
structure and our unique concept for
service and safety, we are winning
new partners all over the world.”
DC Aviation, a member of the
Cirrus Group, was formed by the
merger of Cirrus Aviation and the
former DaimlerChrysler Aviation.
The company is concentrating on
aircraft management, charter and
maintenance of business jets.
It employs more than 380 and its
fleet includes the A319 CJ, two Global
LPJ service
is in for the
long haul
An LPJ flight from Munich to
Lugano will costs €4,550 or
€5,650, depending on aircraft
type, and Dublin to Bilund will be
€9,530. Flights can be booked a
few hours before departure or up
to 365 days in advance. However,
LPJ says it recommends that
passengers book two to three days
in advance. LPJ says that almost
any connection is possible.
“Passengers can choose from
more than 1,000 destinations
in Europe and the Russian
Federation,” says Dr. Gerald
Wissel, global head, LPJ.
“Overseas customers used the
service mainly in combination
Lufthansa says that First Class will
also offer service at private jet level.
with long haul flights operated by
Lufthansa and Swiss through the
Frankfurt, Munich and Zurich
hubs.” In the future Lufthansa and
Swiss passengers will be able to
choose four different aircraft
types. These are: Three CJ+ (light,
seating four passengers); two CJ3
(small, six passengers); two XLS
(mid, seven passengers) and
two converted CRJ 200s similar to
the Challenger 850 (large, 12
passengers). Lufthansa envisages
a maximum of three private jet
partners that might be called on
to supply aircraft.
DC Aviation orders ACJs and Learjets as it
builds huge modern charter fleet
550s, two Global Express, a Global
5000, a Falcon 900 DX, two
Challenger 604s, five Legacy 600s, a
Challenger 300, a Gulfstream 150, a
Citation X, five Citation XLS, two
Learjet 60s and four Learjet 40s.
Detailed fleet expansion plans
include upgrading the DC Aviation
fleet of Citation XLS to seven with the
immediate addition of two more
aircraft. Marc Ambrosius, cfo, says:
“This will make DC Aviation the
largest operator of the Citation XLS in
Europe.” The company’s plans to
operates more than 30 modern
private jets of various sizes with an
average age that is less than 2.5 years
are well on the way to fruition.
“We place great value on our
young dynamic fleet structure, which
is maintained by experienced experts
in our own state of the art
maintenance facility. Thanks to the
two new additions we will be able to
offer our customers one of the safest
and most modern fleets in Europe”,
asserts director of sales and
marketing Jonas Kraft.
He says businessmen particularly
appreciate the advantages of the XLS
including its non-stop cruising range
of 1,944 n.m, and maximum speed of
almost 800 km/h.