Channel Islands' based Aurigny Air Services uses its Trislander aircraft to operate from its Channel Islands base. The company has innovatively rented out its Trislanders as advertising space - they are now daubed in corporate logos and advertising.

In these days of market saturation and soulless commercialisation, it is refreshing to find a marketing manager who is prepared to shoot from the hip. That's why EBAN was overjoyed to speak to Ian Lemoigne, Aurigny marketing manager: "We wanted, firstly, to give local companies the opportunity to promote their wares on our aircraft, and also we wanted them to pay us lots of money. We're not being secret about that.

"What happened was this: About four years ago, the regulations pertaining to advertising on aircraft changed. Our managing director at the time, who has now left, was quite keen to get into this. We've got five aircraft sponsored at present," Lemoigne reported. "The latest, which is for stockbroker Quilter and Co, is registered as G-FTSE.

"Another one of our sponsors has just been taken over by an American bank, who want three more years advertising but need to change the livery this Autumn."

The scheme started a couple of years ago when Aurigny started putting stickers on their aircraft to advertise their special offers. Although five Trislanders are advertising for other companies, Aurigny continues to use its aircraft for its own promotional exercises, in the same vein as bigger airlines such as easyJet and Ryan Air:

"18 months ago we bid for a Guernsey-Stansted route. There is a local licensing authority for these issues down here in the Channel Islands, so we had our aircraft stickered with 'Stansted-Aurigny - yes'," Lemoigne explained.

Aurigny has been in business as a scheduled airline for 32 years, operating Trislanders and Short aircraft to destinations in France and UK. A Stansted-Amsterdam Schiphol service is being set up now.