Barcelona-based Executive Airlines recently expanded its range of services to include aircraft management. The company is managing and operating a Learjet 45 on behalf of a group of companies.

When Executive Airlines took delivery of the aircraft, which was built in 2001, it had logged 500 flight hours – a figure which the company expects it to achieve on a yearly basis.

According to sales manager Jacint Puigmarti, the contract came at the right time for both the company and owner of Learjet 45. “We wanted to start in this type of business operation and the owner of the aircraft was not happy with the other operator he was dealing with,” he said.

The owners’ utilisation of the aeroplane will account for about 60 per cent of its flying time and the remaining time – about 200 hours per year – will be made available for charter around Europe.

As well as the Learjet 45, which is based at El Prat Airport in Barcelona, the company operates a Cessna CJ1, Bravo and a Falcon 900EX.

Although the majority of its charter requests and flights are for the Falcon, which makes about 800 flight hours per year, Puigmarti is certain that the market for mid-range charter flights is set to grow.

“We’re flying a lot with the Falcon,” he said. “It’s a very nice 1999 model in very good condition and it keeps our customers happy. They like using the three-engine aircraft when crossing the Atlantic and it’s well priced.

“We’d like to expand in the middle of the market; we aim to get some new aircraft soon and they will mainly be in this segment of the market for flights in Europe.”

As for the charter market in Spain, the company is optimistic that the recent downturn won’t affect the long-term growth of Executive Airlines. “It’s a little bit weak here but we don’t only work in Barcelona; the CJ1, for example, is based in Palma,” said Puigmarti.

“We deal with many British clients and brokers so for us it’s not the Spanish market but mainly the European market that affects us.”