The Key to Aviation Sucess?
Fact: Yes, it is possible to make money from the business of business aviation. Unfortunately, unless it is in sales, it is just not likely, at least not the way business aviation is done today. Make a few changes to the current going along to get along model and it becomes a massive feedback loop of massive profits. Better yet, the key to the system is inexpensive to develop, and easy to make happen.
Fiction: Charter, fractional, and piggyback charter companies make money. Not so much, they do generate tax writes offs if that is your gauge for success. If losing money to create tax writes off is your metric for success, then you are successful.
Conclusion: while it is possible to make a lot of money in the business of business aviation, it rarely if ever happens.
Why not?
All revenue aircraft of any type are extremely expensive to own and operate, but the acquisition cost and the cost of operations is not the problem.
The primary negative is operations. Uncontrolled operations create massive non-revenue dead head costs, lost efficiency, and failure.
Quick tale of the absurd. A few years ago, I was in JFK heading back to LAS where I live. I was seated next to a person that had at least six electronic devices and the way he was using them I thought we were at Defcon 2. Out of curiosity I had to ask what was going on, and he (proudly) informed me that he was a pilot with XYZ Jets, and that he and seven other XYZ Jets pilots were going to LAS to pick up aircraft to take to pick people up at other separate locations. Let that sink in. Besides the cost of flying eight pilots completely across the country they were wasting an entire crew day to reposition aircraft in a non-revenue environment. Ever wonder why Fractional does not work. I confirmed that with another fractional operator and sure enough that is how it works. And let me say here and now, that is completely stupid. The good news is it can and should be fixed.
Those errors (make that stupid) create and generate massive losses which get compounded by the unknown variables. That combination of the ludicrous compounded by the preposterous will consistently result in highly unstable revenue generation. Time shares aka fractional attempt to mitigate the losses by passing all the unknowns on to share owners which unfortunately, makes owning a fractional share as expensive or more expensive than owning your own aircraft. Fractional biggest attraction is single point pay for the share owners which is simple to emulate.
The segment of all aviation operations that is completely unpredictable and rarely evaluated correctly is known
as, unknown variables and is completely upended by unknown revenue utilization. This problem is the direct result of inadequate knowledge of daily operations, control of daily operational operations therefore costs, and uncontrolled uneven revenue utilization.
Additionally at this time the market of fractional and charter is limited to one-percenters and large corporations, and many of them have their own aircraft. The result is a system built for one percenter’s who typically own their own aircraft limiting potential use to “minimal use”. That can be changed to open the market to millions of hours if and when the right system is made available. A system I have developed and know exactly how to put in place,
While there are most defiantly special skill sets required to operate aircraft, there are no requirements to own or operate an aviation company. The only necessity to be in business aviation is to have money. Lots and lots of money looking for a tax write off.
People that have the money and do own and operate business aviation companies tend to have a limited knowledge base to aircraft operations and regulations. Most business aviation leaders are not experienced in business aviation or remotely understand it. The majority have little to no idea how business aviation works.
The result is the majority tend to follow each other around amplifying each other’s mistakes rather than fixing or improving them.
Once operational our system will make massive profits consistency. The system eliminates all unknown variables, all liabilities, and all standard risks.
If you already have an existing aviation business, this system will be inexpensive to create, portions of which can be patented.
If you would like to know how this can work for you, please contact me at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rickeriksen/
What I can offer is not magic, just practical knowledge. So, while I still can (age wise that is) I am looking to help change the business aviation industry for the better. Therefore, anyone really looking to make real changes while making a lot of money please contact me.
FYI, I Created and Co-Founded Jet Support Services Inc., aka JSSI in 1988/89 to solve a widespread problem in the maintenance environment. To solve the problem, I was using the Costco model before there was a Costco model. I created and Co-Founded Mid-West Air Charter at the request of the Federal Reserve Bank in 1969. Mid-West later became Airborne and today is known as DHL. I have over 21,000 PIC hours. I am typed rated in several Jets and checked out in fifty-two aircraft. From 1976 to 1988 I was CP for MBNA.
