Austria's Tyrolean Jet Services (TJS) has taken delivery of a Global Express previously managed by a German operator. CEO Martin Lener says that plans to bring in a Gulfstream 650ER and a King Air 200 are also in the final stages. “We are in the process of giving our company a new dimension,” he states.

“We have reduced our owned fleet, as there is too much capacity in all markets. We have refrained from doing much charter using aircraft from the corporate flight department we operate, and our other initiative is to increase the fleet of managed aircraft. This is a business model which is quite common in our industry, and this year we have increased our managed fleet by three aircraft.

“We didn't hunt for the Global aircraft, I must say. As for the G650ER, we will operate this jet outside of EASA, because it is yet to be certified. We will operate the King Air 200GT on behalf of an owner.”

The bulk of the TJS portfolio comprises long range aircraft, including ACJs, a G550 and two other Globals. “Even the ACJs that we have are in extended range and have additional centre tanks,” Lener continues. “The typical flight time per leg for these sorts of aircraft is two and a half to three hours. It is very rare that you stretch to the maximum range of an aircraft. We do have some transatlantic or transpacific flights but these are really in the minority, not only for us but also for other operators.”

He believes that the more aircraft TJS operates, the better will be his ability to 'fight against the overheads'. Nonetheless he has no intention of becoming a global fleet leader. “We don't want hundreds of aircraft,” he concludes.

“We have an interesting portfolio, an interesting fleet, and our aim is to add some more aircraft of the types that we already have in the fleet. This does not mean that we will reject additional business that brings a new aircraft type in. But if we had the choice, then we would prefer to add ACJ number four or another Global or Gulfstream. I think every operator feels the same on this matter.”