Club Airways, a new airline for premium travellers in Europe, will begin scheduled services using Flexjet’s fleet of Learjet 45s. In its first phase, Club Airways will offer flights between Geneva, Paris and London, before expanding operations to Frankfurt and Zurich. By the end of 2003, the airline will link approximately a dozen cities across Europe.

Daniel Maiden, md of Flexjet Europe, said: “Bombardier recognises that there exists an untapped demand for scheduled airline service using business aircraft and we are therefore delighted to be working closely with Club Airways to make business aviation more accessible to a larger segment of the market.”

The airline will fly into business aviation centres, including Le Bourget and Farnborough.

A spokesperson said: “Passengers will avoid increasingly congested commercial terminals, realising substantial time-savings when compared with existing air travel options.

“As an added convenience, the airline’s passengers will be afforded the use of limousine service, provided in co-operation with Renault.”

European operators providing aircraft include Aero-Dienst, Avcom Air Charter, ExecuJet Scandinavia, TAG Aviation and Gold Air International.

Club Airways is being financed by a group of venture capital investors, with Michael Schulhof, former ceo and president of Sony Corporation of America and Sony Entertainment, serving as its chairman.