Tuesday, June 26, 2018

Planet Nine In It for the Long Haul

Air charter startup Planet Nine secured its FAA Part 135 operating certificate on Friday and is making its first Dassault Falcon 7X available for charter, the company announced yesterday. It intends to have four 7Xs in its fleet by year-end, each featuring refurbished cabins with Gogo/SwiftBroadband Wi-Fi and in-flight entertainment systems. Wi-Fi is complimentary on all domestic charters in the U.S., it added.

Headquartered in Los Angeles and London with a staff of 28 employees, Planet Nine will be a “competitive offering in the premium end of the ultra-long-range charter market,” said co-founders Matt Walter and James Seagrim. Notably, Bill Wulf, NetJets’ former senior v-p and CFO, serves as Planet Nine's CFO. Combined, the management team has more than 75 years’ experience in business aviation, the company said.

According to Planet Nine, its 11-passenger, 5,950-nm Falcon 7X has operating costs at least 30 percent lower than those of the “equivalent” Gulfstream G550 and Bombardier Global 6000, giving the operator a “distinct advantage” over its competition. Planet Nine is currently working with charter brokers, said director of sales Kirti Odedra.

(Chad Trautvetter - AINOnline News)

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