Manhattan Jet Charter has announced plans to sell block hours for its Premier I aircraft, while continuing to operate an ad-hoc charter business.

The company, which recently acquired two further aircraft - bringing its Premier I fleet tally to three - has already received approval for commercial operations and will be running a full service once its additional pilots have completed their training on the aircraft.

Under the new scheme, clients will be able to buy blocks of 25, 50, or 100 hours, and enjoy a number of other benefits including better rates and access to all three aircraft.

"The block booking service offers many advantages and it means that we know that we've got business for a certain number of hours, which means we don't have to rely so heavily on the ad-hoc charter business," said md Trevor Jones.

"Although the ad-hoc charter market is where our experience lies, I predict that the market will eventually become saturated with Premiers as more and more operators introduce the aircraft type into their fleets.

"It's a good, high speed aircraft with a large cabin size. And although its range is not quite as good as the Learjet 45, the Premier costs considerably less to run. Fuel consumption on a Learjet can sometimes be 80 per cent more. Having three aircraft means that we have enough aircraft to cover breakdowns, or maintenance requirements," he added.