Respite from the Storm
Honda Aircraft Company has compiled a support team tasked with assisting fractional owners of HondaJets previously managed by Jet It, the North Carolina-based charter and fractional ownership concern that, on 26 May 2023, set forth its intention to shutter the entirety of its flight operations.
The assistance proffered by Honda will be provided free of charge and help former Jet It owners negotiate what the Japanese-owned, U.S.-based plane-maker called “seamless transitions to alternative aircraft management options.”
Honda’s assistance initiative will also provide pilot services by which the unceremoniously displaced Jet It HondaJet owners may move their aircraft to Honda’s Greensboro, North Carolina headquarters, where the company will provide up to ninety-days of free parking.
Honda Aircraft Chief Compliance Officer (CCO) and vice-president of customer service Amod Kelkar stated: “We understand the challenges faced by fractional owners who have been impacted by the suspension of their aircraft management after being released from contract by Jet It, and are now seeking alternative arrangements. Consistent with our dedication to customer satisfaction, we have developed and established this assistance plan for those HondaJet owners in need of additional support during this transition period.”
Jet It CEO Glenn Gonzales ascribed blame for his company’s failure to HondaJet exclusively, claiming the company’s Honda HA-420 HondaJet is inherently flawed.
Citing an 18 May, Summerville, South Carolina (DYB) runway excursion involving a private HondaJet operator, Mr. Gonzales—on Friday, 19 May—initiated a safety stand-down of all Jet It HondaJets.
In an effort to substantiate his allegations of the HondaJet’s shortcomings, Gonzales presented an accounting of runway-overrun or runway incursion instances involving HondaJets since the model’s introduction.
Mr. Gonzales’s allegations were summarily refuted by Honda and impugned outright by the HondaJet Owners & Pilots Association (HJOPA), a group representing HondaJet owners.
Industry insiders allege Jet It’s safety stand-down was staged for purpose of masking cash flow issues that had, over previous months, stranded nearly half the company’s 21-strong fleet of HondaJets in the hangars of maintenance centers compelled by lack of payment to hold the aircraft pending remuneration.
Mr. Kelkar added: “The HondaJet remains a reliable and safe aircraft to operate, and we reaffirm our confidence in the aircraft’s safety through our engineering and analysis.”
Presently, upwards of 230 HondaJets collectively representing north of 180,000 fleet-hours are in service worldwide. The OEM reports subject aircraft have a 99.7-percent dispatch rate.
While the Flight Safety Foundation’s Aviation Safety Network database cites 25 HondaJet incidents and accidents since the type’s June 2015 entry into service, none have occasioned fatalities. Though most of the mishaps did involve runway excursions on landing, a causal common denominator deriving of the aircraft itself has not been identified.
In a written statement addressing Gonzales’s allegations, a HondaJet spokesperson asserted: “Jet It’s decision to ground their HondaJet fleet was made independently by Jet It. Importantly, neither Honda Aircraft Company nor any aviation authority has recommended this grounding. Therefore, we have no comment about the decision by Jet It to ground its fleet.”
The statement continued: “Honda Aircraft Company is actively supporting the investigation of a recent accident of a customer aircraft on May 18, 2023, at Summerville Airport (DYB), Summerville, South Carolina. The accident did not result in any injuries, but as the investigation is ongoing, we do not have further details to share at this time. Honda Aircraft Company holds the safety and reliability of our aircraft as our top priorities, and our dedicated team is working closely with the NTSB and FAA to determine the cause of this occurrence and to implement any necessary measures.”
The HondaJet spokesperson’s statement concluded: “In all closed investigations of previous runway events, investigators found no causal factors from the aircraft’s design or any system malfunction. Our engineering and analysis supports our product as a safe aircraft to operate. As a result, Honda Aircraft Company will continue all of its flight activities under normal operation.”
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