Business Aviation: Vista Reports Record First Half

(10 August 2022, 11:40 +07)  Vista Global Holding, a leading Dubai-based aircraft leasing and finance services company, has reported a record six months across all key metrics.

In H1 2022, Vista reported double digit growth despite the challenging macro-economic backdrop, driven primarily by a 43% year-on-year growth across its combined subscription member base.

Sales across VistaJet’s subscription program reached all-time highs — a 25% increase in VistaJet members has driven a 76% growth in gross program hours sold during H1 2022 year-on-year and 27% higher than pre-pandemic full year 2019.

VistaJet CL350 reg: 9H-VCD. Picture by Steven Howard of TravelNewsAsia.com

The number of XO’s deposit members also continued increasing 33% against the same time last year, and the recently acquired Jet Edge further expanded the group’s member base with the addition of a further 400 unique deposit members through the brand’s reserve program.

“It has been an impressive start to 2022 for Vista as we continue to grow across all markets globally, particularly in the United States. As business aviation remains robust, we have seen huge demand as clients turn to Vista for their flying needs,” said Thomas Flohr, Vista’s Founder and Chairman. “Contract sizes continue to grow as clients add hours to fulfill their flying requirements around the world. Vista’s trusted brands, shared economy model, asset light offerings away from full or fractional ownership and proprietary technology create superior client value and elevated end-to-end experience.

“During the first six months of 2022, Vista added over 100 aircraft to the fleet and expanded its managed fleet, both through two strategic acquisitions of Air Hamburg and Jet Edge, alongside scheduled fleet deliveries. With these investments, Vista clients have access to a larger team of experts, and a greater range of aircraft and availability — Air Hamburg expands our scale in Europe and the Middle East, while Jet Edge significantly scales up Vista’s U.S. presence.

“I am excited for the future as our expanded team drives the momentum to keep innovating every aspect of private aviation to provide the most advanced flying solutions at the very best value to every client around the world.”

Regionally, North America accounted for around half of VistaJet’s program revenue, with sales more than doubling in the region — driven by both existing clients adding hours and new client sign-ups.

Despite the ongoing geopolitical uncertainty and backdrop, Europe was the fastest growing region in terms of flight activity and revenue, both of which more than doubled year-on-year. VistaJet’s program sales followed suit with hours sold up 65% both quarter-on-quarter and year-on-year.

There are also strong signs of activity picking up in Asia with a 77% increase in hours sold compared with the same period last year, while growth in the Middle East was driven by existing clients purchasing more hours, with total hours sold up by 60% year-on-year.

The strong performance during the first six months of 2022 is supported by a significantly larger fleet, which has expanded from around 200 aircraft at the end of 2021 to more than 350 by mid-2022 through acquisitions and delivery of aircraft orders.

Over the last 10 years Vista has invested over $4 billion in its fleet expansion — most recently taking delivery of the world’s largest fleet of Global 7500 aircraft, currently at 12, and 10 new Challenger 350s being delivered through 2022.

The acquisitions of Air Hamburg and Jet Edge, which both closed in May 2022, further expanded the group’s aircraft portfolio and is providing more value to clients, at a time of unprecedented demand across the two largest aviation markets.

Those two acquisitions form part of Vista’s strategy to transform the fragmented business aviation ecosystem and increase its presence across the core regions of North America, Europe and the Middle East. This is in addition to upgrading Wi-Fi connectivity and providing brand new cabin interiors across all fleets, supporting Vista’s commitment to ensuring it has the best quality fleet in the market.

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