Moss Aviation Services and Hire (MASH) is chartering out the first Citation CJ2 registered in the UK. Jonathan Moss, who operates MASH, said: "The CAA officials were very interested in the Citation's characteristics. It is for hire and it is the only one on the UK register. No-one else has got around to buying one."

He added: "The CJ2 provides comfort for passengers, it has a range of 1,400 nautical miles which is ideal for shorter trips around Europe. And it is capable of flying into many airports with shorter runways."

The CJ2 is "very popular on the charter and hire market," Moss said. "The comfort levels are relatively good as are the speed and reliability and it is economic to hire."

It went into service at the beginning of June.