Warwickshire, UK-based Take Flight Aviation has taken delivery of a Piper Malibu Matrix for fractional ownership, and the operator reveals that it will be using the aircraft to pave the way for an AOC and turboprop operations in the future.

Sales and marketing manager Hana Smiddy says that the response to the fractional scheme on the Malibu has been great so far: “The existing owners are mostly local business people and very experienced PPLs who fly themselves. We operate a members club for aircraft hire and pilot training. Our business model gives our membership the ability to fly a dozen or more aircraft, which includes taking the aircraft away for a week or so and only paying for the hours flown.

“We already operate a few aircraft on behalf of owners or have shared ownership in the aircraft, so the new business model is an extension of that scheme into more exotic aircraft.”

The Matrix is one of 15 aircraft currently managed by Take Flight, whose members number more than 200. It now has full-time reception cover and employs operations staff seven days a week.

Smiddy says that fractional schemes have future growth potential. “The Piper Malibu works for us on the fractional ownership scheme so we will looking at expanding that side of our business in addition to our core PPL training and hire,” she continues. “We are also exploring a full AOC business and can see a market for this between the self-hire SEP market and jet business.”

Md Mike Roberts purchased the company in 2006 with just one aircraft. He describes the progress towards an AOC as 'tentative' and says that he has been looking into carrying out scenic flights after other operators used the Take Flight premises for sightseeing missions. “The Meridian turbine version could well be the next step for us, or even a King Air. There does seem to be a market for it here in the Midlands, and we have seen several companies run similar ops with Pilatus aircraft and so forth, but they are mostly London-based.

“There is enough of a population to call upon here. We have got members who are involved in the motoring industry and they pop off to Europe regularly. So we are dipping our toes in the water to see what it is like and to see what is out there. The idea with the current aircraft is to sell shares to individuals or to local businesses who might wish to use it frequently. The two guys that have bought into it so far are both self-fly business people.”