Ramon Lopez/ DALLAS/FORT WORTH
EXECUTIVE JET Aviation (EJA) is to buy as many as 40 Gulfstream IV-SP business jets and is surveying the market for an aircraft able to supplement its fleet of Hawker 1000 business aircraft.
Early this year, EJA ordered seven Gulfstream IV-SPs and took options on 13 more GIV-SPs, plus two Gulfstream Vs for its NetJets fractional-ownership programme.
Richard Santulli, EJA's owner and chairman, says that the 20 GIV-SPs on order and option should be considered firm orders. "Our announcement was really a contract for 20 GIV-SPs. The chances are 99.8% that we will take all 20 aircraft," he says.
The first seven GIV-SPs, will be delivered in 1995 and 1996, and the remaining aircraft will reach EJA within five years. "We believe that, over the next five years, EJA will double its order for GIV-SPs resulting in 40 aircraft before we're done," Santulli says. He is still undecided on the GV.
The Montvale, New Jersey based company operates 25 Cessna Citation S/IIs and 13 Raytheon Hawker 1000s, and has 25 Citation Ultras on order for delivery beginning in June. EJA holds options on 25 additional Ultras, and Santulli says that an undisclosed number of these will be exercised this summer.
EJA will buy seven Hawker 1000s, on option and seeks a follow on aircraft. "We need to ... replace the Hawker 1000... Raytheon is deciding if it will continue the line. The line will be sold out in two years and we wonder what we will do after that," he adds.
Plans to move into the European and Latin American markets are on hold. "We're still looking at them but we've decided to focus on our business in the USA. We don't want to stretch ourselves too thinly," he explains.
Source: Flight International
