Royal Jet is proceeding with its fleet renewal programme as planned, its chief executive said yesterday, as makers of business jets raise concerns about the regional outlook for the executive segment of the aviation sector.
Since last year, Royal Jet has been in the midst of a US$700 million renewal programme, so far utilising $200m to purchase five aircraft. The company has acquired two Global 5000s and a Learjet 60XR, and two Boeing Business Jets (BBJ) are on the way.
“Our goal is to have 20 airplanes by 2020,” said the chief executive Patrick Gordon.
The Abu Dhabi-based private charter operator uses 11 aircraft, six of which are BBJs, making it the world’s largest single operator of the aircraft.
Mr Gordon said the company was equipping all of its planes with an enhanced vision system (EVS), a navigational aid that allows the aircraft to operate in poor weather conditions such as fog.
The second BBJ will be delivered next month and will undergo the same process before joining the fleet.
Mr Gordon, who replaced Shane O’Hare as the chief executive in October last year, said the company’s medical evacuation service has posted 20 per cent growth in the past year.
Under Mr O’Hare there were plans to build fixed-base operations at the capital’s Al Bateen Airport, and it had also tied up with the high-end UK luxury travel company Abercrombie & Kent.
But since taking over, Mr Gordon has changed the company’s focus. Royal Jet, he said, would do what it does best – offer planes for charter. Mr Gordon said that the business aviation segment in the region remained strong and was growing much more quickly compared with other parts of the world.
He cited figures which said the sector in the Middle East would be worth $1.3 billion by 2020 from $515 million last year.
However, France’s Dassault Aviation and other business jet makers have voiced concerns about the impact of falling oil prices on the region’s economies.
Nevertheless, its chief executive said Dassault remained committed to its operations here.
“We are forecasting continued, although slower, regional growth in the short term, due to prevailing economic conditions, and will continue to invest in the region so we can continue to support our operators with maximum effectiveness,” Eric Trappier said.
Ben Moores, a senior analyst at IHS Aerospace, Defence and Security, said that while the Arabian Gulf had traditionally been a key driver for the large business jets market, it was likely that the narrative at the Dubai Airshow would “reinforce the downturn in this segment”.
But that has not stopped the makers of business jets from showcasing their latest wares in Dubai including the Dassault long-range Falcon 7X and the new mid-sized Legacy 500 from Brazil’s Embraer.
siyer@thenational.ae
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Video below: CNBC reports on the state of the private jet market from the Dubai Airshow and speaks to the chief executive of Embraer Executive Jets.
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Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
The White Lotus: Season three
Creator: Mike White
Starring: Walton Goggins, Jason Isaacs, Natasha Rothwell
Rating: 4.5/5
Company%20profile
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
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The smuggler
Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.
Khouli conviction
Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.
For sale
A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.
- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico
- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000
- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
THE BIO
Age: 30
Favourite book: The Power of Habit
Favourite quote: "The world is full of good people, if you cannot find one, be one"
Favourite exercise: The snatch
Favourite colour: Blue
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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