Korea Business Air Services (KBAC) aims to establish aircraft management and fractional ownership products in South Korea and other Asian countries with Canadian partner Execaire.
KBAC began offering corporate charters in South Korea this year using a Cessna 206. President Sudong Lim says KBAC is trying to convince Korean companies to acquire shares in piston aircraft with the view of later expanding into corporate jets. He says Execaire will help KBAC develop and market its new aircraft management product and will invest in the new service.
Execaire and KBAC have been partners for the last decade, with Execaire helping KBAC establish a light maintenance capability for Bombardier business jets. KBAC now maintains missionised Challenger 601/604s operated by the transport ministry and coastguard. KBAC also provides spare parts and technical support to Samsung, which operates and self-maintains three Bombardier Global Expresses. KBAC has been the South Korean sales agent for Bombardier business aircraft since 1997 and hopes to sell by year-end a Learjet 40 flight-calibration aircraft to the transport ministry, which is also considering the Cessna Citation Encore and Hawker 400XP.
Lim says KBAC and Execaire have only recently decided the market is ready for aircraft management services. He says the companies will initially develop the product in South Korea and “expand to China, the Philippines and all of Asia”.
In the Philippines, KBAC already operates 23 small aircraft for air taxi services. It also operates full-service fixed-base operations at four Philippine airports. In South Korea, KBAC operates one Cessna 206.handles 200 to 300 business aircraft annually.
Source: Flight International
