Following the recent EASA type certification of the HondaJet, the UK's Marshall Aircraft Sales has formally accepted the keys to its own HondaJet, and hints that sister company FlairJet might eventually place one of the jets on its AOC.

Prior to the official handover, FlairJet pilot Mike Finbow ferried the aircraft from the OEM's factory in Greensboro, North Carolina, across to Canada, Iceland, Greenland and Scotland, before its final leg to Birmingham. He says: “The HondaJet handled extremely well; it was solid and easy to fly. Climb performance was excellent. This is a premium, state-of-the-art aircraft in the light jet class and its distinctive appearance makes it stands out from the crowd.”

Head of sales Howard Povey adds that the cabin experience is second to none in this class. “The size of the cabin, the room between the seats, the room around your head, and especially the quietness are very impressive. At all altitudes and at all phases of flight it is very quiet. That is what I noticed the most.

“There is no doubt that the light jet segment is difficult but with this aircraft we will be bringing something different. It provides a range that is enough for Europe and will cover key destinations. I would expect that we would cover distances of between 800 and 1,000 miles, between two and three hours of flight. From northern Europe that would cover the Mediterranean coast and the Spanish islands. It is early days at the moment for charter, but we intend to eventually have an aircraft on our own AOC.”

Marshalls opted to place the HondaJet on the Isle of Man registry instead of the US registry. “While we had an FAA rated pilot that we could train, we didn't have sufficient mechanic coverage to allow us to operate consistently on the N reg. The Isle of Man have been very supportive, to the extent that our two engineers are now approved to work on the aircraft,” says Povey.