Kerry Lynch stepped into the role of editor of the&nbsp;Aviation International News&nbsp;monthly magazine in May 2022 after serving with&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;for eight years. She joined&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;in December 2014 as a senior editor covering Washington and business aviation news. She has also served on Convention News teams, including as editor of&nbsp;HAI Convention News. Lynch previously spent 25 years with Aviation Week. During her time there, she reported for and later steered&nbsp;The Weekly of Business Aviation, oversaw business aviation content on the&nbsp;Aviation Week Intelligence Network, served on the&nbsp;Show News&nbsp;staff, and held roles as the Washington columnist for&nbsp;Business &amp; Commercial Aviation&nbsp;and&nbsp;Overhaul &amp; Maintenance&nbsp;monthly magazines. In 2021 she was honored with the National Business Aviation Association Platinum Wing Award for lifetime achievement in journalism and was the 2004 recipient of the National Air Transportation Association’s Aviation Journalism Excellence Award. She also has been a recipient of an Aerospace Media Award for business aviation (2022) and NBAA Gold Wing Award (2003, 2024). Lynch graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor of arts in journalism.

Editor, AIN monthly magazine

Kerry Lynch

Atlanta-based ImagineAir is hoping to double its fleet over the next year as it moves to expand its short-hop air-taxi service throughout the East Coast and ultimately move westward. The operator has developed a service designed to compete with automobile travel, rather than airline operations, with its current fleet of 14 Cirrus SR22 piston singles.

 


“Regional travel is highly inefficient,” ImagineAir CEO Ben Hamilton told attendees at Aeropodium’s November 17 U.S. Corporate Aviation Summit in Washington, D.C. “It takes almost as long to drive from Alexandria, Virginia, to Atlantic City, New Jersey, as it does to fly from Washington Dulles International Airport to Dublin, Ireland.”

 


Saying short-range travel is the “pain point,” Hamilton added, “we get our customers home for dinner by flying them over traffic.”

 


ImagineAir, founded a little more than a decade ago, has slowly grown over the years. “We struggled for a while to figure out the best way to add aircraft to our fleet,” Hamilton said. But the company has developed tools such as dynamic pricing to help spur growth. When booking, a customer may be presented different options for times and associated pricing as part of its dynamic pricing model. “We use price as a tool to shift demand,” he said, saying the model “allows us to pack in flights pretty tightly.”

 


Dynamic pricing has enabled the company to more fully use its aircraft, reducing empty legs and increasing availablity. This in turn has enabled the company to keep costs and ultimately pricing down—which is critical to the success of its services. And it paves the way for expansion.

 


ImagineAir has five bases currently, mostly in the Southeast, but also in New England. Hamilton sees additional bases in the mid-Atlantic and in Florida as the company moves to saturate the East Coast before moving west. Part of this expansion is not only for organic growth, but also to open up new pilot pools to ImagineAir, Hamilton said.

 


The company offers a membership program for its frequent fliers, but membership is not a requirement. Some of its customers fly only once a year, while others fly several times a week, he said. The common denominator among its customers is the value they place on time, he said. “We are tackling the road warriors. There’s a lot of potential for this market,” Hamilton said.

 


To attract customers, he added, “booking has to be extremely easy. There can’t be any hurdles.” A few years ago, booking required phone calls and faxes. But now, a majority simply book online.

 


Hamilton called the SR22 the best airplane “that exists today” for its services, providing the combination of advanced safety features with the feel of a luxury car. “We found this to be very successful in getting new people in a small airplane for the first time,” he said, noting most of the company’s first-time customers have not flown private before.

 


While Cirrus has recently brought its single-engine jet to market, Hamilton said ImagineAir wants to remain focused on the piston and the shorter-range flights, at least for the time being,&nbsp;rather than compete with airlines for longer-range routes.

News and issues concerning the aviation charter and fractional-ownership industries and markets, including company announcements, regulations, new developments and labor issues.

ImagineAir Eyeing Fleet Expansion, More Bases

The operator has developed a service designed to compete with automobile travel, rather than airline operations.

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Charles Alcock

News and developments about airplanes, helicopters and unmanned air vehicles used in all varieties of operations, including airlines, military, business, commercial, general aviation and private.

News and issues relating to business, corporate and private aviation, primarily regarding turbine-engine-powered airplanes and helicopters. Subjects include aircraft, engines, maintenance, operations, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security, and training.

The Hong Kong-based operator now has almost 50 business aircraft

China’s Sino Jet Expands Charter Fleet with Second G700

Jessica Reed

Program launches with HondaJet HA-420 and Bombardier Challenger 3500

Honda Aircraft Unit Backs Thrive Fractional Jet Program

Amy Wilder

Elite Jets, MaxAir keep names, add Priester co-brand

Priester Aviation Unifies Companies under One Brand

Program lets non-members compare pricing before booking

BlueSky Extends Pricing Access to Non-members

Hourly rates range from turboprops to VIP airliners

Paramount Business Jets Guide Details 2026 Charter Rates

News about bills, laws, regulations and other governmental decisions affecting aviation and aerospace. Topics include FAA re-authorizations, taxes on fuel and aviation activities, environmental legislation, ICAO decisions, governmental mediation of labor conflicts and World Trade Organization disputes and decisions.

More In Charter & Fractional

China’s Sino Jet Expands Charter Fleet with Second G700

The Hong Kong-based operator now has almost 50 business aircraft

Honda Aircraft Unit Backs Thrive Fractional Jet Program

Program launches with HondaJet HA-420 and Bombardier Challenger 3500

Priester Aviation Unifies Companies under One Brand

Elite Jets, MaxAir keep names, add Priester co-brand

BlueSky Extends Pricing Access to Non-members

Program lets non-members compare pricing before booking

Paramount Business Jets Guide Details 2026 Charter Rates

Hourly rates range from turboprops to VIP airliners

ACA Forum Probes Broker Role in Fighting Illegal Charter

Brokers need to verify operations based on a standard

ACA Forum Explores Changing Role of Air Charter Brokers with AI

ACA is hosting its second U.S. forum as membership grows

FAI Grows Charter Fleet with Second Global 6000 Bizjet

Ultra-long-range jet is now available for worldwide charter

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN