Swiss operator Nomad Aviation has recently added a Legacy 600 and a Global 6000 to its charter fleet. The aircraft are used for charter flights and the Legacy 600 can be reconfigured to a medevac version with one or two stretchers. The company has become a specialist for COVID-19 evacuation flights. The Legacy's cabin offers enough space for patients, medical staff and relatives, and the medevac conversion only takes a few hours. Demand has been strong, since the Legacy offers a three-section cabin and a comfort during long flights.

The operator's most popular aircraft type is the CJ. “The CJs have experienced good demand in Europe during the COVID pandemic, as most airlines ceased operation momentarily or reduced their flight activities remarkably,” remarks CEO Thomas Koehli. “Business flights however were in demand, and are still. Our Airbus ACJ319 saw very good demand and proved to be a popular aircraft since it offers intercontinental range to destinations that will not be served by airlines for the foreseeable future.”

Nomad Aviation has a charter aircraft portfolio with a variety of aircraft to cater to individual customer needs. The fleet ranges from small, short haul Citation CJ1+/2+ aircraft for European operations to large-cabin long-haul jets (Legacy 600 and Global 6000) and long haul aircraft (Airbus ACJ319) for intercontinental flights. The other aircraft in Nomad’s portfolio are only in private use. The company operates nine aircraft in total.

Koehli continues: “We recently performed some medevac flights out of some difficult places, such as Mogadishu. With our established local contacts at airport, security and hospitals, we could establish a successful and safe trip to evacuate relatives safely to their home country in Europe. Such missions are always very time consuming and challenging for planning as for each flight a separate security and safety risk assessment has to be performed. But this extra effort is well worth it when the patients and passengers arrive home safely and happy to get the right medical care.”

The pandemic has affected Nomad Aviation, starting in spring 2020, as more and more countries closed borders and placed tight travel restrictions. In late spring and early summer, Nomad saw a recovery with intra-European and worldwide charter flights as airlines were still grounded or offered a very reduced service.

“The safety of passengers and crews was certainly a reason and major aspect to fly on business jets,” Koehli explains. “The use of the larger jets picked up as well due to the same reasons as experienced with the smaller Citation Jets. Strict health monitoring together with deep aircraft and cabin cleaning was put in place and hygiene measures for crew and pilots on the ground and in the air proved to be very successful. Service providers, such as FBOs, transport and catering companies, were closely monitored for their compliance with coronavirus regulations.”

The company will be concentrating further on charter flight activities in Europe with its CJs while providing long haul flight options with large cabin aircraft to destinations not served by airlines. It will also closely monitor the COVID-19 developments in order to respond to changing travel needs. “For our aircraft management customers we continue to provide and extend our bespoke boutique service and looking forward to expand our portfolio with new aircrafts joining soon,” Koehli concludes.