As an old hand in the Chinese business aviation market, David Dixon has seen the situation change tremendously over the 20 years that he has been based in the region.
And despite the economic downturn, Hong Kong-based Dixon, Bombardier's vice-president for sales, says prospects for business jets have probably never been better and China, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan could embark on another growth spurt.
"The economic crisis in Asia is different as the ability to lend and borrow was not as badly affected as it was in North America and Europe. The financial institutions here were not in as much trouble, and so the business aviation market has not followed the market in North America," says the Hong Kong-based Dixon.
"Honestly, the interest in business jets has come back and come back very quickly over here. The level of interest is high, and the people who contact you are those who are genuinely keen on buying business jets. That is a very good sign."
The key factor is the sheer size of Asia, and the increasing amount of economic interest companies from the continent have in each other and in Europe. While a lot of the demand used to be from European and US multinationals coming to Asia, he sees more companies from this region buying up firms in the West or setting up operations in other parts of the continent.
"People want larger aircraft like our Challenger due to the large distances that they have to travel. The chief executives and senior executive are travelling more often to further parts of the world. That is, of course, very good for our business," he says.
Within the north-east Asian market, he believes that the recent liberalisation of direct scheduled airline links between Taiwan and China also bodes well. While business jets must still stop over at a third point, usually Hong Kong or Macau, Dixon believes that this will change. "We see that coming, it is purely political will. The only uncertainty is when. Once you hurdle the political environment, it will come."
The perception of China as a tough market for business jets is also changing, he adds. From only a handful of airports being open to business jets almost a decade ago, about 150 of the country's 400 airports are now accessible to all business jets and many are near the major cities.
It once took about a week to obtain permission for foreign-registered aircraft to fly to China. Now, the owners need only provide additional information for checks the first time the aircraft flies into the country. For subsequent trips, permits are usually issued within a day, says Dixon.
Source: Flight Daily News