In a broad look at business aviation activity, Lithuania-based charter company KlasJet, a member of Avia Solutions Group, finds that there has been high demand in Europe and elsewhere. At the close of 4Q22, it says European private jet operators had completed more than 600,000 business jet flights to various destinations around the world. It attributes this to the growing numbers taking advantage of business aviation memberships to increase their access to private jet services, be they regular or first time flyers.

“As we move into the first and second quarters of 2023, the market should sustain a higher service demand and business aviation activity compared to the previous year,” says CEO Rita Domkute.

KlasJet says current forecasts indicate that the private jet segment will return an annual market growth rate of about 5-10 per cent in 2023 compared to pre-pandemic activity. But it questions whether, despite the promising prospects of a business jet boom, fears of recession held by many European countries could result in a market decline. Findings from some external aviation market surveys show that over 94 per cent of passengers who started using business aviation during the pandemic continue to take private flights. And while the demand for regular private jet flights may have declined in the past two years, by 57 to 40 per cent, it is apparent that a high number of ‘COVID flyers’ remain.

KlasJet further notes that celebrities and business people have been criticised for their ownership and excessive use of private jets. A report by clean transport organisation Transport & Environment has identified private flying as a leading source of environmental pollution: on average, private aircraft contribute more than 14 times as much air pollution per passenger compared to commercial airliners and produce 50 per cent more emissions than trains.

So how sensitive have these NHWI become to growing criticism? Some have raised concerns about their emissions output, especially after learning that social media users were tracking their private jet flights. It seems likely that they may explore other travel options, perhaps on-demand charter flights, private jet sharing, aircraft leasing for fractional ownership or jet card memberships.

The operator urges the business aviation industry to address its environmental impact, and believes that accelerating innovation and implementing sustainability projects are the crucial issues that jet manufacturers must deal with in 2023.

“Business aviation companies will continue to deal with uncertainties while trying to predict the ever-changing market demand from private air passengers this year,” says Domkute.

The company has begun passenger ACMI operations, adding eight 186-189 economy configuration Boeing 737-800 aircraft to its fleet before the peak summer season.

“We see a very strong need for ACMI in the market right now, and it is only expected to grow; the market is predicted to reach $8.9 billion in 2030,” says deputy CEO Lukas Petrauskas. “Aircraft manufacturers are dealing with backlogs, and the situation is made more complicated by a number of overbooked MRO slots. Paired with this being the first summer largely out of the pandemic and skyrocketing demand for travel, it’s key for tour operators, brokers and airlines to take action now and not wait until right before the high summer season.”

KlasJet’s ACMI services support both bulk and single requests, and can offer more tailored solutions for a variety of capacity needs. It can match aircraft with tailored schedule parameters and criteria, and it can offer expansive geographical coverage. Alongside that, the ACMI team is on hand for AOG situations.

By the end of 2023, KlasJet plans to operate 15 Boeing 737-800 type aircraft, and its five-year goal is to be operating no less than 35 aircraft dedicated to passenger ACMI.