Freedom Air LLC (FDJ, Chicago Executive) remains optimistic about the future of its Eclipse fleet, seeing it as the most economical business jet available, owner Kenneth Ross told ch-aviation in an interview at the NBAA-BACE convention in Las Vegas.

"It is the most economical aircraft to rent or charter for 600-700 nautical miles or less. Literally, it costs half of what everybody else charters. And so our business stays very busy. We have had repeat customers for many years at this stage. For our program there's very little marketing mainly because we have a stable repeat customer base," he said.

Ross, who began his career as an aviation lawyer but later managed and owned multiple FBOs, charter, and maintenance companies, was president of Eclipse Aerospace - the entity that acquired Eclipse Aviation after its bankruptcy - between 2009 and 2017. He remains convinced that the Eclipse 500 and the upgraded variant, the 550, remain a highly attractive proposition to the market with no real competition in the ultra-light jet segment.

Freedom Air currently operates one Eclipse 500 and one Eclipse 550 on its Part 135 certificate, basing them out of Colorado Springs. The aircraft are managed on behalf of their owners, and the operator has no plans to buy its own aircraft. "My charter model has been very successful because we don't own the aircraft," Ross underlined.

In the past, the company had a wide range of types under both Part 91 management contracts and Part 135 certificate, including turboprops like King Airs and PC-12s and large jets such as the GIV. However, it is no longer active in this segment, and Ross said that his focus was on running the current fleet efficiently with no immediate expansion plans. Growth would necessarily require a rise in marketing expenses, which could undermine the current financial model. Nonetheless, if a good opportunity arises, the operator would look at adding new aircraft.

Ross highlighted that for smaller charter and management companies, the margins are generally low, which means that expansion and pursuing new customers could prove too costly. "There is a substantial number of Part 135 operators that will represent to owners that they make money on the aircraft. That's simply not true," he argued based on his experience as an investment consultant for the industry.

He added that the successful operation of an aircraft charter business requires lots of financial prudence balanced with investment costs. He argued that one of the problems with the eVTOL market is the lack of a viable financial model to recover huge research and development costs through operating revenues. As such, the Eclipse aircraft are particularly well-positioned given that this is the least expensive type available in this segment, competing only with the Cirrus SF50, which, however, has a more limited range and capabilities given it is a single-engine aircraft.

Parts and maintenance outlook

Ross emphasised that despite the relatively small number of Eclipses on the market, there are no substantial problems maintaining the fleet. Following the bankruptcies of Eclipse Aviation in 2009 and One Aviation, parent company of successor company Eclipse Aerospace, in 2021, a new company, Eclipse Aerospace Inc., was revived in 2021 to continue supporting the type.

"Their primary focus is maintenance, repair, and keeping the fleet flying. So there's a steady parts supply network. The biggest challenges for Eclipses are no different than for the airlines or the other manufacturers. The current challenge, in particular, is the slow delivery of engine parts - they cannot get the Pratt & Whitney engine parts on a timely basis," he outlined.

Despite those problems, Freedom Air keeps its Eclipses flying, averaging 500-600 charter hours a year. "We may be down for a day or two longer than we want, but it has not affected the operational side of the business to make any type of significant impact or concern," he said.

He added that with the right evolution of vendors, the Eclipses can easily remain active for another 20 years or longer. He drew a parallel with Learjets, which are out of production but continuously upgraded with new avionics and other components. Nonetheless, Freedom Air might eventually be forced to look at new-generation aircraft; Ross called the Citation M2 "a wonderful aircraft" for its simplicity and strong maintenance base.

Charter market

Ross opined that the charter market for business jets is "no worse, nor better than in the last 10-15 years." He pointed out that the Covid-19 peak was an outlier, and the current woes of some operators can be attributed to their expansion with no long-term plans. Those operators that acknowledged the temporary nature of this spike are now doing better as they did not overexpand.

The Eclipses, which seat up to four passengers, remain an economical choice for charter as the average number of passengers on board is less than two. Due to the lower cost, the market demand for the aircraft is strong among mid-level business owners and small corporate customers.

With its base in Colorado Springs, Freedom Air operates many charters to popular leisure hotspots such as Aspen or Vail/Eagle, but it has also flown to destinations in California, Texas, and other states. Despite some seasonal spikes in demand in Colorado, the year-round demand stays at a high level. Due to the strong local demand, Freedom Air has no plans to move the aircraft out of Colorado Springs, although it could look at opportunities to add other bases with new aircraft.

Freedom Air is particularly attractive, Ross stressed, because its aircraft can operate the same routes as more expensive charter aircraft such as the Phenom 300.

"Companies that do well pick a market that they serve and serve it very well. You need to understand your market. You need to be judicious," he underlined.

Freedom Air has also established partnerships with other operators to offer its customers off-fleet charters of larger aircraft. It prioritises retaining the customer base and is committed to finding solutions for those customers, even if they are off-fleet, to keep them loyal to Freedom. This model is largely based on connections within the business community.

"It's almost a self-sustaining business for us. If I wanted to go out and expand that, I'd have to create a similar model in Los Angeles, Cheyenne, Wyoming, or Chicago. That would take another 12 to 18 months, and I would utilise all the potential resources that exist, brokers, connections with individuals, and business organisations. Over a period of time, that would morph into a pool of stable customers as the business becomes mature," Ross said.