Germany's Sylt Air has invested in a further two CJ2+ in order to increase capacity. The company operates three of the type, along with two Cessna 400-series twins and three Partenavia twins.

“The CJ2+ is the best choice for our operation,” states CEO Stephan Stritter. “From experience, the average duration of our flights is two hours carrying two to four passengers. We rarely go up to six passengers, so we can cover this with the CJ2+ perfectly.

“The decision to get two more CJ2+ was based on the desire to operate a fleet of similar aircraft and to be able to change schedules between aircraft.”

Stritter is happy with the performance of the aircraft, which have completed more than 650 hours per aircraft per year from floating bases. Sylt also operates another seven MEP and SEP aircraft for a scheduled service during the summer season between Hamburg and Sylt and completes survey flights over the North and Baltic seas.

“Because of the limited zero fuel weight and payload capacity, we had been very restricted in range and the number of passengers,” Stritter continues. “With the CJ2+ we got rid of this problem and are now capable of flying with up to six on board. All of our CJ2+ are equipped with a galley and sliding doors for the flushing toilet compartment, as opposed to the curtain on the CJ2. The avionics system is more modern too, with the FMS 3000 from Collins, ADS-B Out and WAAS LPV approach capability, enabling us to fly to more airports that do not have any ILS.

“Ops are easier now, since we can change between aircraft and have redundancy should one become unavailable.”

As Sylt Air also performs sightseeing and scheduled flights for the tourist trade, seasonality is a factor in Stritter's operations. "We fly a lot between April and October. The jet operation is active all year round, but the highest demands are in the summer with less in winter. Our main challenge is to employ qualified crews that will complete each job to our requirements. We require high quality from our pilots.”

Talks are under way to acquire the fourth and fifth CJ2+, one of which could be added in 2019 and the other in 2020.

Sylt Air was created in 2008 following a merger with Friesenflug and Aeroline.