Poland-based operator Jet Service took delivery of a Challenger 300 aircraft on November 12, which it is operating privately until the company receives an AOC to begin commercial operations. The aircraft has already completed trips to the Middle East and Africa, explained director of flight operations Oskar Maliszewski.

Jet Service owns the aircraft and decided to buy it as part of the company's plans to develop the charter market in Poland. Although it considered a number of other aircraft, including the Citation Sovereign and the Falcon 2000, it chose the CL300 because it was available much sooner than the others; the other aircraft had waiting lists of up to two years, he said.

As well as its availability, Jet Service selected the aeroplane because it can carry up to nine passengers comfortably, land at short fields, and has a range of 3,100 miles.

The firm also operates a CJ2 privately within Europe and expects to acquire a third aircraft next year. The Challenger will allow the company to offer trips further afield, or to the same destinations carrying more passengers.

Maliszewski said: "There is no jet on the field in Warsaw. Currently, if someone in Poland wants to charter an aircraft they have to rent it from Berlin or Vienna or some other place. Although our competitors have 90 per cent of the market, the client currently has to pay extra for the aircraft to be brought in to Poland, making the cost much more expensive. We think it will be a great advantage to be able to provide an aircraft that is based already in Warsaw."