Two prominent players in the UK business aviation market have established sales and support operations at Oxford Airport. NAC Aviation, the UK distributor of

Beech and Hawker aircraft and owned by southern Africa’s

pre-eminent general aviation network, National Airways, has relocated from Farnborough.

The move to Oxford will afford the company with the ability to offer turnkey management packages

to buyers of new and used

Raytheon products including hangarage and, in due course, the possibility of charter operations.

Raytheon Aircraft Services at Chester (Hawarden) had wished to establish a feeder service centre in the southern part of the UK for some time and says it settled on the location of a Hawker Service Centre at Oxford after reviewing a number of options.

Now offering, for the first time, an OEM-owned and operated service centre within London’s catchment area, Raytheon says it can satisfy a broader client base for Hawker and Beechjet operators who may prefer a southern UK port to their main facility, the original home of Hawkers at Chester (Hawarden).

Oxford Airport md Steve Jones commented: “Following the changes instigated in 2003, in particular the recent runway extension, Oxford has become a very attractive alternative base to some of the more costly traditional London alternatives. We have great advantages in terms of ease of operations and fewer of the typical constraints on hours of operation, capacity or noise issues.”

Peter Griffith, md of NAC Aviation, added: “Having assessed a number of southern UK airfields, Oxford offered the best package of value, flexibility, ease of access and location with a growing community of similar businesses in aircraft sales, engineering and charter services. Apart from the inherent value

for money, it is the synergies with these other like-minded businesses that made Oxford the most appropriate choice.”