Munich-based operator MHS Aviation has entered into service a year 2000 refurbished Global Express. “We are proud to offer to the charter market another heavy jet equipped with a beautiful cabin that needs no owner approval,” states CEO Steffen Fries. The cabin features three divans, a conference area with four seats and four single club seats, and is able to accommodate up to 14 passengers.

“The new Global Express should have joined our fleet in July/August, but at the pre-purchase inspection some discrepancies were found that had to be rectified,” Fries explains. “But we were lucky – we have nearly new engines on the aircraft. The Global has been available for charter for a short time, having recently left Bombardier in Montreal. We are seeing a very good response to that aircraft since it entered service. We have already crossed the Atlantic with it for the third time, having previously flown from New York to Geneva and from Paris to New York.

“Not requiring owner approval is a huge advantage, and we have priced it at a very attractive rate. Competitors might say this is what everybody does, but we calculate it based either on a daily margin or the number of flight hours.”

For a seven or eight-hour transatlantic flight, MHS offers an hourly rate below €6,000, because the aircraft charter rate divided by the number of flight hours gives the company enough margin to operate it for one day plus one day crew rest.

Fries continues: “Our chief pilot, who has flown eight other Globals before, is positively surprised by how quiet it is. The feedback we received from the brokers has been very positive too. We are almost booked up until Christmas, while New Year we have flights to the Maldives and India. There is certainly business for ultra long range aircraft that do not require owner's approval. It is great to be able to make a commitment about availability on the spot without having to wait for an answer. There are not many people who will buy a multi-million dollar asset and not expect to have it available for Christmas or New Year. We will have to wait and see whether it becomes an all-year-round success story, but so far so good.”

The G650 is still the MHS flagship but it has very limited availability, although the G550 owner is more open to charter nowadays. “Having two ultra long range aircraft available gives us great flexibility,” says Fries. “Nevertheless there is still a difference if you call me for my Global, because I can give you a commitment in the same minute, whereas if you call for the Gulfstream it might take a day or two. The combination of the Global's large cabin, the fact that it needs no owner approval, and the attractive rates, is a good formula.

“We were unsure about what the reaction would be to a Global Express manufactured in the year 2000, but the aircraft is maintained in such brilliant condition with Rolls Royce CorporateCare and Bombardier Smart Parts and so on. The only downside with an old aircraft is that it is more expensive for the owner to run it since the maintenance costs are higher. But from a customer perspective, it is maintained in the same way as a three or four-year-old aircraft and we are not seeing any hesitation from customers regarding the age of the aircraft at the moment. It is often the inexperienced charter customers who have recently entered the market that believe a newer aircraft is better. They have come from Phenoms and so on with the mindset of 'new car is better than old car'. People who charter Challengers and Globals are more experienced and have been chartering for longer. They know that age is not necessarily an indication of quality on an aircraft. There are impacts on the maintenance costs, but this is not something that a charter customer worries about; it is a matter for the owner.

“An old aircraft can be in just as good condition as a new aircraft, but as it ages the cycles get shorter and the programmes become more expensive. Once components have been changed, they are as good as new. People who know our industry know this. But yes, an old aircraft is more expensive to maintain.”

The operator is also receiving a lot of long range requests for its Challengers, where customers are accepting a fuel stop. “We have a booking to fly to Mongolia, which is more than a nine-hour flight. Passengers are more receptive to a fuel stop for this kind of trip; they can have dinner for two hours during the fuel stop while the flight crew makes preparations, and then the passengers can rest for another five hours. It's good that people are considering this option, and might be a new trend. It is also a lower cost alternative and I think we will be doing more of this,” Fries concludes.

MHS now operates 21 aircraft: a Gulfstream G650, Gulfstream G550, Global Express, Challenger 605, three Challenger 604s, a Challenger 300, Phenom 300, Phenom 100, Learjet 45, CJ3, CJ2+, seven Dornier 328-100s and an Agusta 109 Grand in VIP configuration.