Saturnino De Cecco, owner of the pasta brand 'De Cecco' and president of Italy's Hoverfly, says the company has grown because it has turned a passion for flying into a profession.

He says: "Hoverfly was born out of the passion for flying that I share with my good friend, pilot and vp of Hoverfly Cesare Lanza. We understand the needs of our clients."

De Cecco says that Italian companies are beginning to invest once again in new and original initiatives.

"Hoverfly is certainly one of them," he says. "In Italy there is still a lot of work to be done in this sector but we are convinced that the potential profit margins are great."

Hoverfly, founded and headquartered in Pescara, underwent a serious business evaluation before launch. De Cecco says: "The fleet was the main topic of our evaluation and we were also influenced by our personal experience as pilots. The final decision was made when drafting our business budget and in the end we settled for twin-engine machines. We chose both the AS355 for its versatility and the AS365 for its speed, passenger capacity and price."

He says Hoverfly wants to make potential clients aware of the safety, security and versatility offered only by helicopters, which is "especially important in a country as geographically diverse as Italy."

He adds: "Due to the vast layout of our country, we had to open four bases for Hoverfly; one in the north near Milan, two others in Rome and Pescara in the centre of Italy and another in Porto Cervo on the island of Sardinia, one of the most popular islands in the Mediterranean."