Peter Summers visits Orange County-based private charter jet company JetSuite to hear about its innovative options for private aircraft management in our new sharing economy.
It is 7.30am at John Wayne Airport in Irvine, Orange County, California, and fixed base operator (FBO) Atlantic Aviation is already busy with a ramp full of private jets waiting to go. There are no long lines for check-in or security and, every time the door opens, the smell of aviation fuel and the roar of jet engines fills the waiting area.
Cameron Gowans, vice president of sales and marketing of JetSuite, steps smartly through the ramp door and greets the author. He is – first and foremost – an aviation enthusiast and explains: “I’ve been around aeroplanes my whole life. My dad was an aeronautical engineer and we had a small airport. I was with Embraer for ten years before joining JetSuite.”
A Dassault Falcon, which has been obscuring our view, moves off towards the runway, revealing a striking Embraer Legacy 650, N650TB (c/n 14501204), with its Rolls-Royce engines painted gold: a new participant in JetSuite’s aircraft management programme.
The aircraft is going through the final stages of preparation for its flight to Bozeman,…
