More on Microjets

Nov 28, ’04 12:00 AM
Author Jim Zellmer Categories Business, Transportation


Sara Kehaulani Goo on Microjets or Very Light Jets (VLJ’s) and the emerging air taxi system ($6/mile):

The fledgling industry is “going to be looked upon like the Wright brothers in 1903,” said Ken Hespe, a spokesman for the National Consortium for Aviation Mobility, a nonprofit group that has been studying and developing new uses for the nation’s tiniest airports and for small jets with NASA, which estimates a market for 8,300 microjets by 2010. “It’s going to be a revolution in the transportation industry,” Hespe said.
Analysts say microjets will appeal to a cross-section of customers including corporations, which might add planes to their fleets, and wealthy travelers who are looking for a less-expensive alternative to owning a jet. Since 2001, companies such as NetJets have grown by providing access to planes around the world for members who pay for fractional ownership of aircraft. Aviation experts say air taxis with all-microjet fleets could serve as an even more affordable version of the fractional ownership aircraft model.