Abu Dhabi-based international luxury flight services company Royal Jet has taken delivery of a Learjet 60.

The L60 is an advanced version of the Learjet 55, with a longer fuselage and more powerful engines, the company said in a statement.

“The addition of the L60 is a direct result of the growing demand for Royal Jet’s services. Businessmen and VIPs better understand the cost savings to be made in using our private charter services, against wasted time sitting around in airport lounges and having to juggle around their business demands purely to fit in with the scheduled airlines’ timetables,” said Royal Jet’s president and chief executive officer Shane O’Hare.

The L60 will be utilised under Royal Jet’s managed aircraft programme, by which the company uses and manages the aircraft when it is not required by its owner.

“Aircraft management is one of the easiest ways for an aircraft owner to reduce operational costs,” O’Hare said.

“By consolidating expenditure on flight operations, running maintenance, flight planning, pilot & cabin crew scheduling and benefiting through pooled discounts on everything from fuel to heavy maintenance, costs for the owner are considerably reduced. Conversely, Royal Jet benefits from the addition of the aircraft to its fleet when it is not required by its owner. To this end, the addition of the L60 supports the company's five year plan which sees the amount of aircraft in our fleet expanding to around 20,” he added.

Royal Jet’s L60 layout has seats for a maximum of seven passengers, in line with its standards for luxury and comfort. Royal Jet can also offer its L60 guests a full hot catering service on request, with a maximum of five passengers.

“The Learjet 60 has a greater range capability than its predecessors – allowing it to fly for up to five hours without refuelling and thereby giving more flexibility in where it can fly to,” said Captain Chris Norgill, who will be in charge of the L60. – TradeArabia News Service