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Flying on the Billion: How Israel Became a Private Aviation Power - Voila! Of money

2023-03-31T07:13:44.875Z


Even in Israel, today the 5th in the world in the number of private planes per capita, ahead of England, Germany and France, a private plane was a luxury reserved for the elite - until the corona arrived


Like Elon Musk, Bill Gates and John Bezos: the Gulfstream G4 model, at a cost of 65 million dollars (photo: photo processing, Lee Sibilia)

During the month of March, while the country was bustling, the annual international conference of private and business aviation took place for the eighth time.



Of course, private aviation is not for everyone - and has always been the property of the rich or huge corporations, but the corona virus gave a huge boost to the industry and penetrated additional layers of the population, who not only wanted not to be dependent on commercial flights and contact with a large crowd of other people, during the epidemic, but also Hold on to the business need to hold face-to-face work meetings - and not via zoom, for example.



The intensification of globalization and working with entities overseas, collaborations of international brands with local influencers and more, led to the understanding that even in the business world the sky is not the limit, on the contrary, they are a direct channel for growth and development - and they are more accessible than ever.



The world of private aviation in Israel flourished significantly during and immediately after the Corona period and in Israel today, dozens of private planes are active.

It seems that people who first used private aviation during the Corona period, continue to fly in private planes even after it, in light of the business efficiency and the significant saving of their precious time.



How much has the market grown?

Pay attention to the following amazing figure: Israel has a ratio of the number of executive planes per capita - one of the highest in the world right after the USA, Canada, the United Arab Emirates and Australia.

Internal division according to the buyer's requirements, that's how it is in the world of private aviation (Photo: Ronan Topelberg)

As part of the conference held by the JETSETTER company, which deals in the purchase, sale and management of private aircraft, companies presented technology, services, infrastructure, insurance, safety and finance from a field that provides a holistic answer to the world of aviation and operations.

Among the exhibitors, three companies dealing in the field of aviation stood out and gave the participants a taste of life at the top of the upper millennium.



"The business aviation conference held in Israel and on an unprecedented scale, illustrates the importance of Israel in the global market of private aviation," explains

Gal Peleg, chairman of the JETSETTER company

, "in Israel there are over 70 executive jets operating", and to be precise, we will see Because one out of 123,000 Israelis owns a private plane, as mentioned - the fifth place in the world, ahead of countries like Germany, England and France.

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From any angle you look at it, it looks more luxurious (Photo: Ronen Topelberg)

Second hand from a billionaire

Here are some figures: in 2022, approximately 7,000 private flights will depart from Ben Gurion Airport, an average of 22 private flights per day.

Also, in the last 10 years, the number of active private planes in Israel has more than doubled.



In 2013, 33 private planes operated in Israel, and in 2016, 37 planes operated here (an increase of 10% in 3 years), and in 2019, 48 private planes already operated in Israel - an increase of about 30%.



The really big jump happened under the influence of the Corona epidemic, when the year 2022 ended with about 70 active private planes (an increase of nearly 50% in three years).



According to

Sergey Katz, from the Laufer Jet company,

the corona crisis was a significant springboard for the private aviation market: "Between 2019-2021, the private jet charter sector increased by 300% because it allowed people who wanted an accessible solution to go abroad.

This upward trend continued even into the year 2022, when an additional increase of 10% was recorded in the volume of demand in the group."



Returning to Gal Peleg, who founded the JETSETTER company in 2007 with the aim of providing dedicated services to owners and operators of airplanes and helicopters, according to him, the high demands exist even in unstable conditions such as epidemics, wars, high interest rates and unstable economic stability, and he adds: "The waiting lists for new airplanes create demand Awake for used planes".

Ron Hoffman, CEO of JETSETTER,



reinforces his words

with facts from the field: "This year the aircraft manufacturers are reporting low inventories against high demand, which causes the waiting lists to get longer and the buyers to receive the new aircraft they ordered only years later.

This reality makes the second-hand private aircraft market a strong and dynamic market."



"Despite the uncertainty in light of fears of inflation in 2023, the volumes of use of private aviation remain high," adds Hoffman, "the volume of sales of certain planes, the price of which has jumped beyond their realistic price, is on hold because the sellers are hesitant to lower the price and the buyers are waiting for price drops, and despite this , we predict that in 2023 the trend of activity in the industry will remain active and demand for private planes will remain high along with the continued entry of new users in the field."

Personal flight attendants and treats during the flight (Photo: Lee Sibilia)

In Israel, there are currently active planes of a wide range of models, from small and old to large and new.

We tried to find out what the most popular models are:



the popular Textron Hawker 800 XP model, from the production years 1990-2000, is usually intended for up to 8 passengers and is able to reach anywhere in Europe with a flight range of up to 2,400 miles.

Its cost to buy is: 2.5-3 million dollars and its operating costs may reach up to a million dollars a year.



Bombardier's Challenger 604 is able to reach the US with one stopover. Cost: $7-8 million to buy used and its annual maintenance cost is about $1.5 million.



The Gulfstream G4, from the higher category, is larger and can reach the US without intermediate stops.

Its cost to buy used: about 20 million dollars and its operating costs are over 2 million dollars per year.



FLEXJET, owner of the world's premium aircraft fleet,

presented at the exhibition in Israel the Gulfstream G650, which is considered one of the fastest, most luxurious and most expensive business jets in the world, it is designed for 14-12 passengers depending on the configuration of the passenger cabin and it will cost, like Bombardier's Global 7500, 60-70 million dollars to buy new or Around 50 million dollars to buy used.

Its flight range is very large (11-14 thousand miles non-stop) and its annual maintenance cost is about 3 million dollars.



Besides the purchase cost and operating costs, it is important to take into account the expected depreciation, as large aircraft have a significant depreciation of their value, and it may sometimes reach more than 10% per year.

A bed, a lounge and a shower: the corona virus has brought closer to private aviation populations that previously "made do" with only the luxury classes (photo: Ronan Topelberg)

Route calculation: do a calculation before take off

Even if you own a private plane, before each flight you make cost versus benefit considerations.

The costs of each flight are separate from the purchase and maintenance costs and include fuel, parking at the destination, a team of pilots and flight attendants, accommodation arrangements for them if necessary, and more.



The advantage of the private flight is of course the saving of time, the creation of a personal schedule independent of other factors - and of course the possibility of landing at smaller and more airports.

Not exactly a consideration for everyone, but when your schedule is tight and your time is worth a lot of money, the lack of dependence on commercial aviation provides a perfect solution.



Weighing the purchase costs with the operation and maintenance costs, the depreciation value and the frequency of use which is not high, brings many interested parties to check other solutions as a discounted alternative to direct purchase.



Various companies in the field, such as FLEXJET, allow you to purchase partial ownership (a type of partnership) of an aircraft of your choice with a commitment to bank hours for realization during the year, but if you do not want to wait years on the waiting list for a new aircraft and would prefer to pay much less for a second-hand aircraft, JETSETTER is the address for you where they will check For you, leading criteria in choosing the exact model, such as: expected flight range, frequency of use and budget.



After an in-depth conversation to understand the needs, you will decide together on the model that will meet the expectations and JETSETTER will begin a regulated process that includes locating the appropriate aircraft in the world, a strict inspection process with official testing institutes in the world, correcting findings if any, connecting the buyer with the seller, accompanying the purchase process and handling the delivery The plane to Israel.

This is a process that can last several months.



JETSETTER also takes care of those who buy a new plane, enter a long waiting list of 2-4 years and are interested in purchasing a used plane in the meantime for the waiting period.

Drinks bar, luxury wines and macarons even before take off.

What shall we tell you?

You can get used to it (photo: Lee Sibilia)

feel Elon Musk

To get an impression of the luxury, comfort and saving precious time that the private aviation industry makes possible, I was invited by JETSETTER, the FATAL Laufer Jet terminal, and FLEXJET for an experience of about 5 hours, which included taking care of the flight arrangements, accommodation in the Fatal terminal, a private transfer to the plane's steps and a round-trip flight Return to Cyprus with the Gulfstream G650.

On a personal note: I felt for a moment like the richest people in the world, flying on a plane just like this: Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates.



Upon arrival at the airport, we parked the car in the parking lot adjacent to the Fatal terminal, a convenience not available to passengers on public flights departing from Terminal 3 or 1. Upon entering, we were greeted by the staff who took our passports and began making flight arrangements for us.



After about 20 minutes, a private car was waiting for us that drove us straight to the steps of the plane.

The flight to Paphos in Cyprus and back on the fastest private plane in the world took 45 minutes each way.

Since we were flying higher than a typical passenger plane, a higher speed was possible, which was reflected in a shorter flight time (a marginal figure if the destination is Cyprus, but more significant on long flights).



During the flight we enjoyed VIP service, free seating in a space designed in the style of a business lounge with pampering leather armchairs, desks, wifi, private bedroom, shower, gourmet refreshments and a premium wine refrigerator.

Needless to say, we haven't had time to launch glasses for "cheers" and we've already landed.



I will digress from the subject for a moment, because if I want to feel like one of the world travelers, I will only add that upon landing, a private driver was waiting for us who drove us to a perfect spot on the beach of Paphos.

We had lunch, skipped the handshake and contract signing stage (we'll leave that to Bill Gates after all) and concentrated on trifles like: what kind of wine we'll drink, what we'll order for the main course, and how the dessert will be photographed.



The wine, the whipped cream, or the daydream that we were running the world, disconnected us for 5 hours from the tense reality in Israel, until we had already forgotten that demonstrations and roadblocks were promised to take place in Israel as part of the opposition to the legal revolution, in preparation for the intended flight of the Prime Minister and his wife... The pure escapism



continues A little more - and maybe it's the luck of the rich, when the Prime Minister's flight was postponed - and at the same time, the disruptions in Israel were also postponed.

The business lounge at the Fatal terminal in Netavorg (photo: Walla! system, Lee Sibilia)

Not for tycoons only?

So you stay in the top 1,000, but drop for a moment from the level of Jeff Bezos to the level of wealthy people, but not billionaires: if you are among these, and plan a pampering vacation even compared to the usual luxurious standards of flying in the premium classes, you do not have to own a private plane to fly like this



If you contact the Laufer Jet company, you will receive price offers according to the type of aircraft, the destination, the period, the number of passengers, the requested level of equipment and any additional flight needs.

After you make a flight reservation, you can arrive at the Fatal terminal about half an hour before the specified time and the staff will carry out, in an efficient and discreet manner, the entire flight preparation procedure for you, starting with border control crossing, quick check-in, baggage handling and a private driver to the runway.



During this time, you can relax in a luxurious lounge or a private room and enjoy a pampering food and beverage bar, a cigar room, yeshiva researchers, a duty-free shop and even a shower.

How much will the pleasure cost if you just go through Terminal Fatal?

Well, not cheap, but not just for tycoons anymore: about 600 dollars (before the cost of the flight, of course).

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Tags

  • business

  • aviation

  • a plane

  • private plane

Source: walla

All business articles on 2023-03-31

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