Luxaviation UK has welcomed the arrival of a newly refurbished Bombardier Challenger 605 to its managed fleet. It will be based in Istanbul and is available for charter following an extensive refurbishment of its interior and exterior.

The colour of the aircraft was originally red and black, but has now been changed to dark grey and silver, and the interior has also received a refresh and now features onboard wi-fi.

It is also introducing a Boeing MD-87 to its fleet that will be placed under its Aruban register for private operations only, making it the first airliner to join its fleet. The executive configured airliner can seat up to 30 people and has a range of 4,800 nm.

George Galanopoulos, Luxaviation UK's chief executive officer and head of charter sales, Europe says: “This summer has been a turning point for us at Luxaviation UK after the last 18 months. We've seen passengers being able to travel again thanks to the COVID-19 vaccination programme and the traffic light system; we have seen a 40 per cent turnover increase this summer over August 2019 for charter.

“To keep up with the demand for charter, we began searching for new aircraft to join our fleet. This Challenger 605 is a long range aircraft with a wide cabin, perfect for those who are looking to travel with extended families or for business. It will be used on our popular routes such as around the Middle East, Croatia, India and further into south east Asia.”

The Challenger 605 is suitable for up to 12 passengers and is capable of flying 4,000 nm non-stop for eight and a half hours with a maximum speed of 0.82 Mach. The aircraft is a large cabin business jet and has the widest cabin in its category.