Expands Management Fleet With Airbus A319CJ
The Middle East and UK-based business aviation group Rizon Jet
is progressing with the development of its new MRO facility and FBO
Terminal in Doha, State of Qatar, which is now expected to open in
January 2011. Rizon Jet is attending MEBA in Dubai this week with a
large stand (C310 in the central hall) to introduce its bolstered
management team and bring customers and potential customers up to
date with progress on both new facilities in Doha, State of Qatar
and London Biggin Hill Airport in the United Kingdom. A substantial
investment in these two business aviation centers has been made to
guarantee that they comprise the latest technologies and are
state-of-the-art when complete early next year. Combined, they will
create an additional 90 new jobs.
The company, headed by CEO Patrick Enz, moved into the Rizon Jet
Centre at Doha International Airport at the end of October. Hand in
hand with the infrastructure developments, Rizon Jet has now built
up its operations and engineering capability, supported by some
strong new management appointments. These include Captain Javed
Latif who joins Rizon Jet as Director of Operations. He brings
considerable experience in corporate aviation having flown a large
variety of business jets after an illustrious career in the
military. Simon D'Oyly, newly appointed Director of Sales and
Aircraft Management, joined Rizon Jet this summer from AJA in Abu
Dhabi. He was also previously MD of Aircraft Management with
National Air Services in Saudi Arabia. Paul Macintyre joined Rizon
Jet as Manager of Maintenance from Ocean Sky Engineering where he
set up an EASA 145 Bombardier approved aircraft maintenance
facility.
In Doha Rizon Jet has also been steadily adding to its
maintenance and technical capabilities. It is set to obtain Qatar
CAA 145 approval in December 2010 and is close to attaining EASA
145 maintenance approval in January 2011. For the longer term, the
organization is pursuing approvals for maintenance accreditation on
Bermudian, Isle of Man, Pakistan, UAE and Saudi Arabian-registered
aircraft.
Rizon Jets's new FBO in Doha will be formally opened in January
2011 and will have a direct accessible to the apron.
The current managed Rizon Jet fleet comprises one Global
Express XRS, one Hawker 900XPs and two Challenger 605s, all
operating on the Qatari Air Operating Permit (registered under A7).
A significant development underway is the addition of an Airbus
A319 (ACJ) to its managed fleet. Oryx Jet, Rizon Jet's UK
affiliate, is managing further one Hawker 900XP and one Premier 1A.
"Our customer wants a comfortable and spacious environment for his
family and friends during his travels. The new Airbus ACJ ticks all
the boxes for his requirements. Moving into the management of an
Airbus Corporate Jetliner was both a natural and desirable step for
us," said Rizon Jet CEO Patrick Enz.
In parallel with developments at Doha, Rizon Jet opened its
brand new hangar at London Biggin Hill Airport at the end of August
2010. The MRO facility has been focusing on its maintenance
capability with Rizon Jet now holding approvals for the Citation
560 Series, Hawker family 780, 800, 800XP, 850XP, 900XP and 1000,
plus the Bombardier Challenger 600 series. It also provides support
on wheels, tyres and batteries. Rizon Jet is also in talks with
several OEMs to offer maintenance support on several aircraft
types.
The two level FBO / VIP Terminal will be completed in April 2011
just ahead of EBACE next year. "Harmonzing and undertaking the
shape and development of two, brand new, VIP FBOs simultaneously
was, in hindsight, more ambitious than we first realized,"
acknowledged Enz. "Sourcing the right materials to do the work took
longer than anticipated. However, the decisions we have taken to
further enhance both FBOs and the consideration and attention we
have put into choosing the right management and personnel means
that our clients will experience a far more superior experience
when Rizon formally opens next spring."
Rizon Jet's move to London Biggin Hill will see the group
established in its new premises ahead of the 2012 Olympics, which
the airport is placing a lot of emphasis on, addressing how it can
provide capacity. "Hangar space in the south of England is in
strong demand and we are getting strong interest in this, together
with our third party maintenance capabilities," added Patrick
Enz.
Supporting the continued strategy of providing a secure and safe
service, the company has appointed UK headquartered, Control Risks,
an independent specialist security and risk analysis consultancy,
to assist their operations team. The international business, which
has 37 offices on five continents, provides qualified advice that
will shore up Rizon Jet's ability to manage unpredictable or
hostile situations.