New Zealand operator GCH Aviation has added a Challenger 604 to its fleet, which the company describes as ‘an elegant aircraft with a comfortable widebody cabin’. The CL604 is a long-distance performer that can provide single legs of up to 4,000 miles and can handle short range missions around New Zealand, Australia and the Pacific Rim. The aircraft had major airframe and avionics upgrade in 2020, including an interior refurbishment with cherry wood cabinetry. Its spacious cabin offers a forward four place club group configuration and a four place divan across two opposing club seats in the rear. A large forward wet galley with microwave, coffee machine and ice boxes, as well as a spacious aft lavatory and LCD screens, provide all the amenities needed for a comfortable journey. The aircraft also has a wheelchair lifting mechanism, meaning it can accommodate passengers with limited mobility.

Founder and MD John Currie says: “The Bombardier Challenger 604 started its charter service with GCH Aviation in March 2020, just as the New Zealand border closed to international visitors due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite this, the 604 is busy with internal New Zealand business and personal travel within the confines of the country.

“For our domestic New Zealand Flying Doctors and local tourism charter operations, the Beechcraft King Air is our preferred aircraft, and the Challenger is our aircraft of choice for international private jet charter and aeromedical charters. We believe there is also scope to increase our jet charter business in the near future.”

The CL604's range means it can easily reach any city in Australia and is capable of reaching the lower half of Indonesia and across the Pacific to Tahiti without a refuel stop. “Currently we are bound by the confines of New Zealand, however we see our future business firmly in the South Pacific and Australasian theatre of operations providing a luxury jet charter service with end-to-end luxury air transportation service from Australia and New Zealand to our Pacific Island Air business in Fiji and beyond,” Currie continues.

GCH has carried out some international repatriation flights for New Zealand citizens who want to return to the country, and it has been operating strictly in the confines of the medical protocols for COVID-19. The company has also performed some non COVID-19 related medical repatriations from Australia and Fiji.

“The pandemic and subsequent border closures have meant that the international trans-Tasman and Pacific Island business has not been able to happen, however we have focused our attention on the business and personal traveller, who is time poor and wants the convenience and safety of personalised jet travel within New Zealand, and New Zealanders returning home from other parts of the world who cannot get a commercial connection through a commercial airline due to the lack of commercial routes,” Currie explains. “In 2021, if the Australia, Rarotonga and Fijian borders open, we will have good forward demand for the Challenger into the Asia/Pacific region. In the meantime, we continue to look after our existing clientele and build demand with new clients for the charter jet operation.”

GCH Aviation is also building on its existing air medical expertise and its long history in helicopter and fixed wing air ambulance operations by providing a new international air ambulance service called Aeromed Pacific. GCH Aviation now provides intensive care specialist medical staff and a full spectrum medical stretcher for specialist medical repatriations through with Aeromed Pacific. It sees international medical repatriations as growth opportunities.