P.180 Fractional Will Concentrate On Growing Brand

Robert D. Taylor, chairman and chief executive officer of Executive AirShare, announced this week the regional fractional aircraft ownership company is combining its positions with 18 Embraer Phenom 100 aircraft from Clearwater, FL-based Avantair, a company best-known for offering fractional shares in the Piaggio Avanti P.180 aircraft.

Executive AirShare now holds firm orders for 28 Embraer Phenom 100 aircraft, with deliveries scheduled to begin in Summer 2009, with options on 12 additional Phenom 100 aircraft. The company also holds four firm orders and four options for Phenom 300 light jet aircraft, making Executive AirShare the only established fractional aircraft ownership company to offer Phenom 100 and Phenom 300 aircraft.

As ANN reported, Avantair announced in October 2006 it would order 20 Phenom 100s, in order to expand its product offerings beyond the high-speed Piaggio turboprop. The company currently operates close to 100 P.180s, which operate throughout the country.

"This agreement offers both Executive AirShare and Avantair the opportunity to enhance our fractional ownership programs," said Taylor. "While Avantair focuses on growing their national program, Executive AirShare gains access to more Phenom 100 aircraft, enabling us to expand our regional fractional program into new markets well into the future."

Executive AirShare currently operates a fleet of 15 aircraft in five cities in the Central United States, with the aircraft based in the same cities as their owners. Unlike national ownership plans that fly multiple clients to different locations on the same day on the same aircraft, by scheduling an aircraft to only one owner per day, Executive AirShare is able to adapt to changes in owners' intraday schedules, offering complete flexibility and convenience, and most closely replicating the benefits of full ownership.

"The major advantages of our regional fractional ownership model are that owners fly in their aircraft the majority of the time and they know the pilots that fly their airplane," said Executive AirShare President and Chief Operating Officer Keith D. Plumb. "We have become the flight department for each of our clients, and offer service and safety standards that are comparable to those of any Fortune 500 company."

The Phenom 100 is powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW617F engines with 1,615 pounds of thrust each, and will accommodate four passengers in the club seat configuration.

"We are very excited to add more Phenom 100 aircraft to our program," adds Plumb. "Its range, speed, comfort and luggage-carrying capabilities will appeal to our owners and enable us to attract many more customers by offering the most capable very light jet fleet in the industry."

FMI: www.execairshare.com, www.avantair.com