In the Middle East private jet market,
configuration is important. For example, among Arab clients there is a desire
for separate areas for men and women on the plane, as well as specifications for
the location of the bathroom.
The Middle East might account for less than one
tenth of global private jet sales, but the passengers flying on the region's
luxury planes can be the most demanding in the world.
"Yes the people who fly our
planes are demanding, and they have a right to be," says Faisal Ghazi Kayal,
managing director of Saudia Private Aviation.
"You're talking about the
businessmen who very much invented the rules of the game."
Capturing the small but
significant patronage of the region's super rich is becoming increasingly
competitive as more private jet charter companies tap into a market that is
expected to grow by around 12% in the next two years, according to the Middle
East Business Aviation Association.
To do that "it's about offering
the full experience, from pre-flight through to well after the plane has
landed," says Kayal.
"The journey doesn't end with the
aircraft landing, we have to think 'Where should we take him to, to which
hotel?'"
The in-flight experience is just
one part of it, although private jet manufactures and companies that fit out
jets are continually pushing the limits of what can be done to meet client needs
on board.
Later this month Lufthansa
Technik is set to flight test its first steam shower aboard a Boeing 737 -- not
an easy job given the hazard of creating pressure and heat within the cabin.
Condensation also must not be allowed to form inside or on the plane's
structure.
Rolling out the red carpet: Private jet companies give their clients the
real royal treatment.
The royal
treatment
For Kayal's clients who wish to
be treated like kings, Royal Jet, the UAE-based charter company, actually caters
for members of the Emirate's royal family.
The company is jointly owned by
Abu Dhabi Aviation and the Presidential Flight Authority, the royal flight
service.
"It's like having a fleet of
boutique hotels," says Shane O'Hare, the company's CEO, from the luxurious
confines of one of the firm's 737 Boeing Business Jets.
Cultural needs are taken into
particular consideration.
"Among Arab clients there is a
desire for separate areas for men and women and they are very specific where the
bedroom may be located," says O'Hare.
"It's important that the
bedrooms are located near the front of the plane, while for some other markets
its OK for them to be located near the back; so configurations are very
important."
In the Middle East, many private jet clients tend to travel with their
families more than clients in other regions.
Other business jet manufacturers
like Gulfstream find their larger models are more popular in the region.
They attribute the popularity to
how many more high net worth individuals in the region travel with extended
families, than those from other parts of the world.
"Gray market"
Together Saudi Arabia and the
UAE account for around 70% of the private jet market in the Middle East and
North Africa, according to Middle East Business Aviation Association, but there
are some clouds on the horizon for the charter companies.
One of the biggest problems they
face in the region is the "gray market" -- planes owned by private individuals
who then rent them out without having to go through the same regulatory scrutiny
(or expense) of the charter companies.
"It's like having unlicensed
taxi cabs," says O'Hare. "There is a network or brokers out there who cater for
this and it actually undercuts the legitimate businesses."
"We like competition but we like
competition that is fair and legal. It's a very expensive business to be in, the
margins are razor thin, and we'd prefer it to be an industry of well-funded
organizations experienced in aviation rather than aviation enthusiasts -- the
owner-operator syndrome."
This is one of the reasons
companies like Royal Jet and Saudia Private Aviation are keen to highlight the
safety and security of their planes and the experience of their pilots, as well
as the level of service.
Efforts are being made to close
the loops in the system, according to Kayal, "and ultimately it will be [fixed],
like in any maturing market."
Until then private jet charter
companies will continue to provide luxury services and play the necessary "game"
in order to secure the loyalty of clients.
"The price has to be right and
the product has to be right," says Kayal.
culled from www.cnn.com
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