Growth spurt

Royal Jet's culture and the development of its services are in part due to the influences of the Amiri Flight company, which has a 50% share of Royal Jet.

Catering exclusively to the royal family and other VIP government staff, Amiri Flight's entire ethic has evolved from a specialised service which has become attractive to a niche market.

O'Hare also puts the fast paced growth of the operator down to its segmented approach to business.

"We have four to five distinct key markets, from high network individuals to our corporate customers and our Medivac operations. This diversity spreads the risk of the revenue across different areas. We also run the fixed base operations (FBO) facility here at our base in Abu Dhabi International airport, which is a stand alone business and the exclusive facility generates significant revenues for us."

In addition, Royal Jet is considering expanding its maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facilities.

"We are looking at the options," O'Hare reveals. "We have a fully integrated technical and engineering department in Royal Jet and like everything we are always asking ourselves ‘are their opportunities for us?'"

But O'Hare admits that the operator is reluctant to pursue this venture alone. "In the business jet sector and technologically, these are highly specialised areas and it is often more cost efficient to partner with others to assist with doing the job, rather than have everything in-house."

In keeping with this business ethos, the CEO continues to display a resourceful nature in response to economic needs.

"In the global downturn, it is a natural tendency to look at the downside, but we are encouraged to look at the upside and ask how can we push Royal Jet forward, maintain a strong balance sheet and make resources available to us that are currently in the market."

Fundamentally, Royal Jet is maintaining its core customer focus in the Middle East. It is where the company generates most of its revenue from and where it sees the most significant growth opportunities. However, O'Hare explains that flying BBJs allows the operator to consider new and evolving markets.

"The BBJ is what I call a ‘global nomad', there is a shortage of this type of aircraft so it is in high demand all over the world. It is becoming quite normal for us take VVIPs on missions from and to almost any location across the globe. This is an increasing business for us and we expect this sector to grow over time."

In addition, O'Hare does not rule out the possibility of permanently basing jets in other countries. "I can't give you exact details, but we are quite well advanced in exactly that kind of concept, particularly where we see growth opportunities for our fleet."

These ‘growth opportunities' could take Royal Jet, as a business, to locations such as China and India, destinations which have both been cited as key emerging markets in the business aviation industry and markets that, O'Hare admits, Royal Jet could potentially be interested in. "You must remain focused," he says, "question the status quo and continue to seek new opportunities.

Complacency is the biggest danger for any leading brand. Many market leaders have gone out of business because they have become too big and have probably become complacent."

But O'Hare believes that Royal Jet is not destined for a similar fate. "It is true that Royal Jet grew quickly, but it is a business built on a strong foundation. We expect to see a slowdown in business this year and have done worst case scenario planning to tailor our business to the attacks in the market place. We are determined to remain successful," O'Hare concludes.

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