VLJ activity has rebounded strongly in Europe, at the expense of traditional light jets such as Citations and Learjets, according to speakers at the annual Business Aircraft Europe event, held at London Biggin Hill Airport on September 11 and 12. The event grew out of Light Jets Europe, which started in 2007 but was renamed after the VLJ (very light jet) sector nosedived with much of the rest of the industry when the global financial crisis hit five years ago.
The midsize and light jet segments experienced “a huge loss of traffic,” according to analysis by Hamburg, Germany-based consultancy WingX Advance. Richard Koe, managing director, told attendees that for the month of August “VLJs were up 26 percent–so they are clearly gobbling up light jet territory.” Bizliner flights were up 22 percent on the same period last year, he added, although that segment of the market had proved the more resilient during the downturn.
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