Integrity, Transparency Vital To Raise Bizav Industry Standards

DOUGLAS, ISLE OF MAN—If finding itself the focus of a sustained campaign by environmental activists has had an upside for business aviation, it has perhaps been in how the negative attention has demanded a focus from sector insiders on core priorities and purposes. Until relatively recently, the industry has not had to give much thought on how it might be viewed by outsiders. But in the post-pandemic era, public perception is important, especially in the UK and Europe, where “private jets” have become political footballs.

Yet simply enumerating the sector’s positive achievements and attributes is not enough: standards must be raised and maintained.

A panel discussion at the Isle of Man Aviation Conference here set out to assess what constitutes the “gold standard” for the industry and found representatives from across the sector calling for integrity to be demonstrated by transparent and honest communication.

“When we’re advising a client, we want to remain unbiased and give them all the options and all the advice, but allow them to make the decision themselves,” said Warren Lovell, vice president for Europe and Africa with aircraft sales, management and charter firm Leviate Air Group. “It’s easy for me to have an opinion that I pass on to my clients, but it may not always be the best opinion because I don’t understand the full picture.”

That picture is, of course, a complicated one. In a situation such as an aircraft purchase, the large number of specialists with their own deep subject-matter expertise are essential components of making the deal work—but the amount of detail can, if not properly parsed and explained, become problematic.

“There is a huge amount of influence coming from a whole variety of different people, and we’re confusing the life out of these buyers and owners,” said Aoife O’Sullivan, a partner at The Air Law Firm and chair of the board of the British Business and General Aviation Association. “We had a Phenom 100 owner come to us one time and he sent me an email [which] has stuck with me ever since: ‘having talked to so many different people on the complexities of the industry, I just don’t think I can be bothered anymore.’” That owner did later complete a purchase of a larger aircraft, she said, but the risks of completely alienting clients are real.

To an inevitable degree, specialism is important. And portions of the discussion discussed how, and to what degree, sector professionals ought to try to “stay in their lane.” The consensus was that, while specialist knowledge is invaluable, customers need generalist overviews too—as long as they are honest and open.

“Sometimes it’s good to stay out of your lane, as long as you’re transparent,” Paul Doherty, MD of the Ireland office of sales, management, charter and technical consultancy ACASS, said. He argued that sector staff should be helping customers to understand the options they have, rather than necessarily leading them toward a decision that might be more to do with their own priorities than what the client would most benefit from. “I think owners value that,” he added. “It’s very important to be confident and show integrity, because reputation can be destroyed very quickly.”

Even something as basic as choosing a registry can become more complicated than it needs to be if communication between parties is not rooted in practicality and pragmatism. Dialogue should begin as soon as possible if the best outcome is to be achieved, one registry’s director argued.

“I would always encourage anyone who’s embarking on ... a business jet transaction, at whatever stage it is, to just talk to the registry that you think you might be interested in, even if it’s to discount at the earliest possible stage, “ said Simon Williams, director of civil aviation at the Isle of Man Aircraft Registry. Doherty pointed out that many operators are “almost afraid to talk” to registries because they are worried “that they might say something wrong,” but Williams argued that by assessing options openly at the outset, mistakes can be avoided that could restrict the utility of the aircraft.

Clarity is similarly required in the relationship between owners and operators. This starts with building strong interpersonal relationships, with the operator able to understand what the owner wants to achieve, while being honest about what they can—and cannot—do.

“If you can establish that relationship very early and then back it up with depth” then operators will be better prepared for when the partnership reaches “your first difficult moment,” Andrew Pethen, head of client delivery at Gama Aviation, said. Examples of such moments are by no means rare and can sometimes be extreme—such as “flying to the wrong airport,” he says. “I’ve seen it happen.” Yet even then, “you can normally overcome” the difficulty if the relationship is built on solid foundations, he added.