Middle East private jet market set to expand — specialists

AMMAN – There are 29 private jets registered in Jordan, representing only 3.7 per cent of the Middle East's fleet, according to Gama Aviation.

The global aviation services company said, in a report sent to The Jordan Times this week that 65.5 per cent of the private jets are medium to large-sized aircrafts, adding six of the fleet in Jordan were delivered between 2010 and 2014. 

In regards to the region, the UK-based company, said there are currently 792 business aircrafts, 176 of which were delivered between 2010 and 2014. 

Compared to the rest of the world, the Middle East has a much bigger focus on mid to larger sized business aircraft as nearly 59 per cent of its fleet is classified as medium to heavy, and 11 per cent as business jet airliners.  The figures ratios to the global fleet are 29.8 per cent and 1 per cent respectively, said the report.

The region's share of the global business fleet was estimated by Gama Aviation at 30.9 per cent as there are 47,507 private jets internationally. 

Saudi Arabia has the biggest fleet of business aircraft in the Middle East, with 188 (23.7 per cent of the region’s total), followed by Turkey (157 and 18.5 per cent) and the UAE (135 and 17 per cent).  These three countries also accounted for 71 per cent of all business aircraft deliveries between 2010 and 2014, the analysis of Gama Aviation said.

“The Middle East business aviation market is rapidly developing and is one of our major focus areas, which is why we are expanding our operations at the Sharjah International Airport," said Martin Ringrose, Gama Aviation’s managing director for the Middle East region, adding the company expects to see the number of business aircraft in the region — especially the larger ones, to increase.

Gama Aviation is exhibiting at the Dubai Airshow which started on November 8 and runs until Thursday.

A recent research from Global Jet Capital, a provider of financing solutions for large-cabin, long-range private jets, revealed there are around 62 aircraft of this size for sale in the Middle East, with a combined value of around $646.9 million.

Indicating that there four mid and heavy jets are listed for sale in Jordan, the research of Global Jet Capital, e-mailed to The Jordan Times, said there are some 19 of aircraft are registered in Saudi Arabia, and 18 are in the UAE are for sale with the remainder is spread out across the Middle East. 

The finding said around 11 per cent of the fleet in the Middle East is currently on the market for sale. 

The aviation finance specialist, which said it has around $1 billion to lend to clients to purchase relevant business aircraft in the Middle East and elsewhere around the world. 

“Over the long term we expect to see growth in the sale of mid to large sized business jets in the region, and we are well positioned to meet the finance demand to help facilitate this. Many potential clients will be looking to upgrade to a more modern aircraft, but as the region’s wealth increases, we expect to see more first-time buyers,” said Shawn Vick, executive director of Global Jet Capital.