Canada-based business aviation support company ACASS is celebrating its 25-year anniversary. CEO Andre Khury says: “Honestly, the number 25 doesn’t really have any particular significance to me. In so many ways, I feel like ACASS is just getting warmed up, so it’s not like I see it as a culmination or a conclusion of any kind. But as an excuse to reflect on where we have been over the years and where we are now, I can appreciate it. It does make me proud to consider how long I have been able to run a commercially successful company that provides top tier service while maintaining a culture that cares for its people and its values before profit.
“The milestone validates the enduring value of what we have to offer our clients and the business aviation industry. That has given the organisation confidence and helped fuel our continued growth all over the world and the expansion and evolution of our services.

“Because we have multiple service offerings and offer them in many cultures, yet want each of them to be the best in their class, it can be challenging to give each one the attention and focus it needs. On the other hand, we have to be mindful not to devote so much attention to any one service that we lose sight of the forest for the trees.”
Mistakes in the business aviation industry can be very expensive, and Khury has had to make sacrifices: “If you want to maintain a high level of integrity you have to be willing to pass up a lot of opportunities. Weathering wildly fluctuating market conditions, finding and retaining team members with the right experience and character are all particularly challenging in business aviation.
“If I could talk to my younger self, I would tell him to slow down, make decisions with the long-term in mind, and never, ever waiver from core values. It’s really hard to have that kind of perspective when you are growing a business and so much of what you face every day is uncharted territory. But in the end, there are few situations to which those three rules don’t apply.
“The number of fractional ownership and jet card programmes being offered has risen significantly since we started. The supply and availability of pilots has diminished dramatically, and wealth has grown tremendously across the globe. All of these have really changed the landscape of our industry in different ways and, again, our ability to adapt to these changes as an organisation has been key to our longevity.”

ACASS was launched as a flight crew staffing company in 1994, but the internet, social media, and the pilot shortage have radically altered the way it serves clients. “There will always be owners and operators who want the convenience and reliability of a full-service crew staffing service, and we will always be there to meet that need,” Khury continues. “But, now, many owners and crew prefer to deal with each other directly. So, we have invested heavily to develop an innovative new product to make that easier and more efficient than any other resource currently available. As the industry grows and changes, we grow and change with it.
“When we started out, it was difficult to get attention or gain trust in mature markets; some of the established players had been around for decades. So instead of trying to hack our way through the competitive jungle in those mature markets, we blazed our own trail through business aviation’s emerging markets, like India, Russia and Nigeria.

“In many ways, it was the best decision we ever made because it led us to operate and grow in some of the most challenging conditions in business aviation. Today, we are able to use our years of experience in those markets to not only continue owning our journey but to support our clients, partners, and industry friends in ways that few others are equipped to do.”
ACASS' services include sales and acquisition, flight crew staffing, aircraft management and entry into service. It is headquartered in Canada and maintains a regional presence in Africa, Asia, Europe, India and the Middle East.