Flying Group, based in Antwerp, Belgium, has taken delivery of a Falcon 2000EX. The company will manage and operate the aircraft for a private client.

“We were looking for an aircraft with a 2,500nm-plus range and we compared the Falcon and the Challenger 604,” said commercial manager Jurgen Van Cambenhout. “Based on the fact that the 2000EX is a newer aircraft in concept and because they were able to deliver the aircraft more quickly, this encouraged the client to take the 2000EX.”

The aircraft will be put on Flying Group’s AOC but it is not scheduled to be operating as a charter aeroplane; it is purely for private operation. The company estimates that the one-year-old aeroplane will fly between 400 and 600 hours per year.

“It could be slightly more because it’s a long range aircraft and the hours add up quite quickly,” said Van Cambenhout. “We’ll be flying mainly to destinations in the Far East, like China, so this figure could rise to about 800 hours.”

Van Cambenhout cites baggage capacity as a key factor in acquiring the aircraft. “The cabin volume is comparable to the Challenger 604 but the baggage compartment of the 2000EX is much bigger, with the ability to hold skis and golf equipment in the unpressurised cargo hold,” he said.

“The field length is quite good too; it doesn’t need as much runway as the 604, for example.”

Flying Group’s fleet consists of nine Citations, a Falcon 900C, Falcon 2000, Challenger 604 and the Falcon 2000EX. A second 604 will be delivered by early September for a different private owner, which may occasionally be used for charter.

The company is planning to acquire a Citation Sovereign by the end of this year and also has three Mustangs and a CJ3 on order. The Sovereign will be owned by a private client and the other aircraft will be owned by Flying Group.

As for the charter market in Belgium, Van Cambenhout is optimistic that business will continue to rise. “It’s a good market; it’s evolving in a positive way,” he said. “The operation we have in Cannes, where we have a Citation Excel based, is also going very well. We have seen that the charter market is picking up.”