Launching an Elite club
Posted Date: 01/09/2007
Issue: Executive & VIP Aviation International September 2007
Publication: Executive & VIP Aviation International
As the launch customer for the A318 Elite, Comlux Aviation is already flying the type across the Atlantic. Ettore Rodaro, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Comlux Aviation, talks us through the decision to fly five A318 Elites with Lufthansa Technik interiors
The 2007 decision to augment an order for three A318 Elites to five makes Comlux one of Airbus’s largest customers for this type. Working with Lufthansa Technik for the interior completion of the initial aircraft, Comlux is pioneering the partnering concept for luxury interiors. Ettore Rodaro is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Comlux Aviation. He answers our questions about the new partnership approach to interiors:
EVA What is it about the A318 Elite that fits your business model going forwards? Presumably fulfilling a transatlantic mission is a significant plank of your strategy? Are you equally keen to build city link business from Europe to the Middle East and Russia?
ER The North Atlantic, especially from the UK, is a very important market for us and will be a real racetrack. We have similar requests and very high demand for routings like Moscow, Dubai or Jeddah to Europe (Paris, London, Malaga or Nice).
EVA Can you comment on why Airbus won the campaign for this five-aircraft fleet? Was one of your purchasing criteria the cabin space offered by the Elite or were there other considerations the Airbus product offers that sealed the deal?
ER The very wide cabin of the Elite and the flexibility exhibited by Airbus and the joint venture partner, Lufthansa Technik, made it the winning team.
EVA Is the demand for longhaul private travel already there and you need to build this Airbus fleet quickly; or is it more the case that you are building this business over time and deliveries will match the speed with which you build clientele?
ER The demand is there, especially if you consider that an A318 costs only about 30% more on the charter market while it can offer 300% more space – this is argument enough for many charter clients.
EVA Will all five Elites have the same interior?
ER The name Elite stands for the joint venture between Airbus and Lufthansa Technik to offer, for the first time, an off-the-shelf interior for an airliner. As a launch customer, Comlux Aviation was able to define the interior to a very large degree and have its experience as a charter operator specialising in VVIP widebody aircraft reflected in the design.
EVA Can you comment on aftermarket support for the Elites? Will Lufthansa Technik maintain these aircraft?
ER Yes, Lufthansa Technik offers a great and never previously seen service; it has a dedicated Elite production line in Hamburg, Germany.
EVA Will you expand beyond your Zurich base as your longhaul markets grow or are you committed to operating from Switzerland alone?
ER Our commercial fleet will be Swiss registered but Zurich is only our headquarters – the fleet is floating worldwide. In order to serve the market properly we have agents in Monaco, Cannes, Northern Italy, Germany, Moscow and soon in the Dubai region.
EVA Are you also building your Challenger 604, Global Express XRS, Embraer Legacy and Dassault Falcon 2000EX fleets? Can you please clarify whether these are owned or managed aircraft?
ER These aircraft are managed. We are also building a fleet of Global Express XRS aircraft in order to serve super longhaul requirements.
EVA What are the key elements of the market that you envisage will drive your growth? Are there indications that market growth will be sustained albeit at a lower rate? What is your prognosis for the market generally?
ER We consider CIS Countries as saturated, but still on a very high level. The markets that are growing at present are definitely the Middle East, India, the Far East and Brazil.
