“Business aviation with commercial airline standards” is how DaimlerChrysler Aviation (DCA) describes operations with its fleet consisting of an Airbus Corporate Jetliner (ACJ), Bombardier Challenger 604s, a Global Express and several Learjets. Based at Stuttgart, Germany, the company provides corporate flights, including a frequent transatlantic shuttle, for the multinational automotive group that owns it, as well as charter and aircraft management contract services that generate income to offset operating costs. It is also a “preferred operator” under Bombardier Flexjet Europe’s Jet Membership block- charter program.
DCA, which claims to have the largest business jet fleet in Germany, was set up five years ago from two existing flight departments following the merger of Germany’s DaimlerBenz with U.S. automaker Chrysler. The original DaimlerBenz operation in Germany had used a pair of Dassault Falcon 20s. Following the merger, the two operations continued to fly from Stuttgart and Waterford, Mich., respectively. Since late 2001, DCA has been a stand-alone European operation after group-wide rationalization resulted in the U.S. aviation arm being sold to Edsel Ford II (who has resurrected the earlier Pentastar Aviation brand for that operation).
