Executive Jet Management (EJM) is expecting its current fleet of 10 jets in EMEA to increase dramatically over the next few years, in line with the model it has in the US. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NetJets, and whereas NetJets offers fractional programmes, EJM offers private jet charter and management under a Portuguese AOC.

Director of EJM Europe Robert Baltus does nonetheless state that if his clients desire it, he can charter out their asset. “I always say that we are the biggest operator no one knows about. Our service is very personal, and I think the US is the best template of where we are going,” he says. “There are two different brands in the US. There is NetJets and there is EJM. If you look at the US there are about 400 aircraft with NetJets and 200 for EJM, and if you look at Europe, NetJets has 100 aircraft and EJME is approaching 10. The services are complementary to each other, because all the services required to operate an aircraft are supplied by either company, so we can spread our knowledge and experience over a bigger number of aircraft.

“At the same time, EJME has a completely different owner profile, because you have owners that only fly privately, or they are looking for revenue to offset the costs, and would like the aircraft to be commercialised. And in between there are all kinds of owners who would like a mix of the two. So there are 200 different kinds of operation more or less.”

The operator is able to offer competitive pricing due to its scale, and has an independent flight safety department, along with a department that focuses entirely on engines.

Baltus prefers to take on larger aircraft: “It is the same amount of work with more revenue, but at an early stage we hold a very honest discussion with the owner to work out whether they really should be chartering, because the revenue you get compared to the cost of operation and depreciation can be negligible.

“If you have your aircraft and somebody else spills something in it for example, then it is spoiled after you have paid so much for a beautiful jet.”

EJME is headquartered at Lisbon, and the combined 'group' with NetJets is currently responsible for 700 aircraft. Baltus anticipates that this number will grow to 800 before long.

Times have changed since he first entered the business: “If you looked at an apron 10 years ago, a CL604 was a big aircraft, and the favourite aircraft of Russia was the Hawker 800, whereas now if you go to that region with anything smaller than a 604 or 605, it is deemed too small. It is a matter of emotion, and size matters.”