South African operator Elite Jet has added a Falcon 50 to its charter fleet and is realising the benefits of becoming ARGUS Gold accredited earlier in the year.

“We are bullish and happy with the ever-changing environment and opportunities that have transpired for us this year," comments CEO Greg Ermes.

"Four additional aircraft are set to join the fleet before the year is out, and a Falcon 900 will also be added onto our AOC in the not too distant future.

"The South African aviation industry is unique in the world, as you can have one tail number on three AOCs. However, both the Falcon 50 and the Falcon 900 will be exclusive to us, which is very exciting and follows the trend we established with our Hawker 400XP and 10-seat King Air B200 with Blackhawk conversion."

He says that the Falcon series is very popular with clients. "Falcons combine robust engineering, VIP comfort and elegance. They are well-suited for any business and VIP traveller. They are highly desirable charter aircraft in Africa and we are confident that both of our aircraft will be well received. We anticipate that the Falcon 900 will perform long haul transcontinental flights as opposed to short internal flying. But even from an internal flight perspective, we often fly from Johannesburg down to Cape Town and that takes roughly two hours. So with a same-day turnaround it is an estimated four hours’ worth of flying, which is no different to a flight from Madrid to London."

Cape Town continues to be a key destination in Africa for leisure visitors, with many going on to see game in the Low Veld, Kruger region. Business executives often fly in to Cape Town before springboarding on to other African business hubs. "This is a buoyant market for us, and is fuelled by the large European and American client base that we have worked with for years," Ermes continues. "It is in this context that the ARGUS accreditation has been advantageous, because we are the only local charter operator that has an FAA certified ops manager. For ARGUS accreditation, the auditors assess the operation from a safety and crewing perspective. Currently we are the only southern African owned operator that has the Gold certificate."

Elite Jet's mission profile changes throughout the year. Leisure is spiking currently, as European charter customers take their vacations. Besides Cape Town and the Kruger area, popular destinations for these passengers include Victoria Falls in Zambia, Kilimanjaro and Nairobi. "Our customers mix and match where they would like to go, including some of the islands such as the Seychelles, Reunion, Mauritius and in some instances up to the Maldives," Ermes explains. "As the European summer season comes to an end you find that there are a lot more business executives coming through and chartering into Africa.

"Part of the reason why they charter is safety and the flexibility to fly when they want to, as commercial flights are not frequent enough. All in all we are having a great year with some exciting new developments materialising."