Al Jaber Aviation of Abu Dhabi has completed its longest ever flight in its Lineage 1000; a ten-hour leg from Beijing to Al Bateen Executive airport in Abu Dhabi. It is the longest commercial flight completed by the type. COO Mark Pierotti is very pleased with the popularity and performance of the aircraft: “The aircraft has a private room and a wash room at the rear, and the private room includes a divan that converts to a bed. It has internet, email and telephone capability, extra fuel tanks for a range of up to ten hours, and it is an ETOPS aircraft that can fly almost anywhere in the world.”

Described as a 'wonderful' aircraft, two Lineage jets have been operated from new by Al Jaber for VIP charters. Both aircraft have the same configuration and carry out mostly medium to long haul sectors. “The Beijing to Al Bateen flight was the longest flight we have ever done, but we tend to do flights of four hours plus, such as Abu Dhabi to Paris, Dubai to London or Abu Dhabi to Moscow,” adds Pierotti. “This aircraft has been to every corner of the world on charters. When I say it has 19 seats, the amount of space on the aircraft between those seats must be considered; it is enormous with all the divans and sofas.

“It is a little bit smaller than an Airbus or a Boeing 737, but not by much. It is in the category of the super midsize jets, so it is bigger than a lot of the Gulfstreams and Bombardiers but not quite as big as an ACJ or BBJ.”

The company has an Airbus A318 Elite Plus in VIP configuration, along with a Hawker 800XP which it operates for its Sky Limo service. “Sky Limo consists of mid and small sized jets that can buzz around the region, giving executives access to meetings in cities within a five-hour range of the UAE,” Pierotti explains. “We can take them up to Doha for a day's meeting and then bring them back, and the same for Jeddah. We manage other people's aircraft under this service as well.”

He does not intend to change the company strategy, as fixed wing aircraft are proving successful. “The comfort you get in a VIP jet is superior to what you get in a helicopter. The sensation you get in a VIP helicopter, the speed you travel, the distance you can travel and the luggage that you can take is very different. A helicopter is perfect for Abu Dhabi to Dubai and inter city flights, but a business jet is much more appropriate for flights that are further afield and intercontinental, which helicopters struggle with.

“I see the Middle East as the main market for large business jets like the Lineage and Airbus and Boeing aircraft. It is definitely the market to be in. The last few months have been the low season, so it is a struggle to find charters at this time of year, because there are many aircraft on the market. The Middle East is definitely popular for private flying.

“The problem is that a lot of the aircraft that are available are 'grey market' aircraft. They should not be available because they are private jets owned by private owners. They are not commercial and they are not operating under commercial AOCs, which is a big problem.”