ATM exhibition reveals soaring light jet use

Forty years after the first flight of the revolutionary Learjet, the Middle East is now the world's fastest-expanding market for personal jets. Industry experts forecast that the region will account for eight per cent of the 600-aircraft, USD 9 billion global personal jet market this year.

New scheduled services from Moscow and the huge worldwide publicity for Dubai as a leisure and investment destination are channeling ever more affluent people into the Gulf region, and hotels, tour operators and resort companies are integrating personal jets into their service-package. The seven-star Le Reve development in Dubai, for example, recently signed a deal with ExecuJet Middle East (EJME), one of the region's leading executive aviation groups, to provide guests with personal jet services.

"Flexible options and charter packages have broadened the personal jet market," said Khadar Mattar, sales director at EJME. "We're opening up new options for the travel industry."

The business market is climbing steeply too, according to ExecuJet, thanks partly the Gulf's construction and finance boom. Businesspeople and professionals are finding themselves forced to jet around the region. Many are finding their schedules increasingly constrained by travel commitments.

Time is money, and many Middle East businesses have concluded that executive jets are a cost-effective tool to maximise senior managers' productive time. Small jets like the Bombardier Learjet, and sleek modern turboprops like the Pilatus PC-12, can drop in to small, convenient local airports, allowing businesspeople to get to several locations in different countries in a single working day.

Regional aircraft charter groups have been building up their fleets in response. ExecuJet's Learjet, Challenger and Pilatus aircraft are about to be joined by a Bombardier Global Express - a 16-seat jet that can speed non-stop from Riyadh to Cape Town, Auckland or USA. Just one refuelling stop will take the Global Express between any two points on the globe.

Whether it's pleasure or business, users can forget about tiresome check-in queues and delays. Private flights arrive and depart at VIP terminals. "The aircraft is right there for the client," says Mattar. "The whole process is quick and secure."

ExecuJet is the Middle East sales and distribution agent for the Bombardier Learjet rangeof business aircraft. The newest model, the high-performance Learjet 45XR, went on sale in the region in October. The 45XR will climb to 51,000 feet and cruise at up to 534 mph - Mach 0.81. With a range of over 2,000 nautical miles, the $10.4 million aircraft can fly from Riyadh to New Delhi, N'Djamena or Warsaw without refuelling. From Dubai, the 45XR will give non-stop service to Colombo, Nairobi or Moscow.