Elevate Aviation Group, the parent of Elevate Jet (LVT, Bedford, MA), is considering acquiring Part 135 charter operators, Part 145 maintenance firms, and FBOs but wants to maintain a size that allows it to retain a highly personalised level of service, chief executive Greg Raiff told ch-aviation in an exclusive interview.

"We've simply taken that very successful boutique experience from Private Jet Services, our charter brokerage, and applied it to aircraft management. I think there's a value proposition to put the hospitality and the individualised service back into the management industry these days," he outlined.

The group aims to capitalise on the synergy between its charter brokerage and operating arm to deliver personalised service. Despite the market's overall decrease, it is growing in 2024, and its performance allows it to consider growth through acquisitions.

"Part of that market contraction on the demand side will, I believe, create some additional expansion opportunities for well-positioned, financially strong companies like Elevate in the near future," Raiff said. "Some of these contractions are helping people get more realistic [about pricing]. We will wait another quarter or two or three, and you might see us make an announcement about some other acquisitions."

The group's growth is also underpinned by remote work, which has allowed it to scale up recruitment of staff from places other than its legacy bases.

Charter brokerage pillar

The group's first business was Private Jet Services, a charter broker focused on the "deep end of the market." Raiff identified sports teams, artists, and politicians on campaign trails as some of the key target customers. PJS charters Elevate Jet's aircraft as well as third-party ones.

One of PJS's strategic partnerships is with New Pacific Airlines (7H, Anchorage Ted Stevens). The company markets the three B757-200s in executive configuration, seating up to 78 passengers, operated by New Pacific Airlines and previously used for the now-discontinued scheduled operations. Raiff revealed that the product was in high demand.

"We're incredibly happy with the strategic growth and the initiatives we've taken around New Pacific. I think the US market, in particular, has been devoid of quality business class or VIP-configured airliner solutions for some time," he explained.

Elevate sees the opportunity to grow its partnership with New Pacific to "a dozen aircraft" in the next few years, as the current fleet is booked out for the entire winter season already. He believes that the fleet renewal of mainline carriers, in particular Delta Air Lines adding A321-200Ns, will further boost demand for bizliners with lower operating costs, such as the B757s.

PJS is also the exclusive broker for the charter of eight DHC-8-100s and one DHC-8-300 operated by New Pacific Airlines under the Ravn Alaska brand.

Broad but personalised focus

The group's Part 135 operator, Elevate Jet (acquired in 2022 under the previous name, Keystone Aviation), currently has five aircraft on its charter certificate: a Falcon 7X, a G200, a G650ER, a Global Express, and a Phenom 100. Raiff emphasised the company had no preference regarding the size category or OEM, and, including its Part 91 aircraft management and Part 145 maintenance businesses, has supported all major manufacturers in the past.

"We pride ourselves on having the sophistication to handle that broad spectrum," he said.

He is a "huge fan" of all modern aircraft and their capabilities, he added. As such, the group would not exclude any of the OEMs from its portfolio. He draws the line, however, at "aircraft that are not well taken care of, and then have huge dispatch reliability issues". Connectivity is an important issue, and "all business aviation airplanes should roll out of the factory with high-speed wi-fi". Elevate Aviation Group is an authorised installer of Starlink connectivity solutions, which Raiff praised for its speed and low price.

Elevate Jet aims to cater to the varying and individual needs of its customers. Raiff said that the company's target is to exist in the middle spot between the largest aircraft management companies, which "simply can't deliver the level of personalised service", and "mom and pop shops" with three or fewer aircraft, which "lack the level of service, the purchasing power, or the level of sophistication".

Consequently, Elevate positions itself as a "boutique" company delivering "curated and personalised service".

"We're there to assist people who are looking to invest money in on-demand aviation and provide them value, whatever their needs are. What we've learned over time is that those needs evolve over time, and they're different from one client to the next," Raiff explained.

He did not name the company's target fleet size but said that Elevate aims to remain "one aircraft below" the maximum size it can support with the level of service it aims for.

The operator strategically does not own any aircraft, although it can briefly own some during transition periods. Raiff opined that making money out of asset ownership is incredibly rare, and even the large corporate customers that own their aircraft do it "because it is the right answer for that client" rather than out of pure cost-effectiveness considerations.

"If you're only trying to run it as a business, then it makes no sense to try and buy airplanes," he said.

Charter demand

Despite acknowledging the general slump in the charter market, Raiff remains positive about the outlook for Elevate's services, given its reputation. He added that customers appreciated the retail and management business run by the group, which allows it to maintain the quality of both management and charter services thanks to the synergy between Elevate Jet and PJS.

"I can think of one company in particular, whose name I won't mention, that is fantastic at Part 91 management and awful at actually delivering charter hours. So one of the things that we know that we do really well at Elevate is, if there's a customer who wants quality charter on their aircraft, 100 to 500 hours a year, and that's part of their business plan, we know that we can deliver quality and direct customer revenue," Raiff said.

The pressure on the market allows the group to capture even more customers who are dissatisfied with their previous managers. As a result, Elevate's business is growing year-on-year, in contrast to market trends. The group also has a high rate of return customers, driven by its strategy of focusing on the long-term interests of the given customer.

The demand for large and ultra-long-range jets remains stronger, although not necessarily on European routes, which tend to be more price-sensitive. Raiff said that smaller jets were more difficult to obtain, as many former customers now fly less or have returned to commercial airlines.

Maintenance and supply chain issues

Elevate Aviation Group has two in-house Part 145 bases at Salt Lake City and Denver International airports. Raiff said this business "really only got started in 2020" but is poised for further growth. While the group is looking at possible acquisitions of MRO firms, it is also contemplating opportunities for organic growth.

"We are on the lookout for acquisition targets, but we will not put all their eggs in that one basket. I do like the fact that we have an opportunity to locate maintenance where our customers need us," he said.

When asked about supply chain issues, Raiff highlighted that they affect all companies in the same manner. While their severity and unpredictability are "absolutely insane", they also allow high-quality companies to distinguish themselves. They are also easier for larger companies like Elevate than for smaller operators. He opined that the issues are now better than two years ago but will likely persist for another one or two years.