Luxaviation, a leading luxury jet and helicopter service provider, is actively investigating how it could bring eVTOL aircraft into its fleet, CEO George Galanopoulos said.

Speaking to FINN at the unveiling of the company’s new Praetor 600, Galanopoulos said that Luxaviation had spoken to Lilium and was closely monitoring other eVTOL developers. The aircraft could enter the fleet as soon as 2026, subject to certification.

“There are great projects, and I think half a dozen will succeed,” he said. “That is an interim solution, because electric is not 100% sustainable. You use electricity from somewhere, you have batteries. But it is a good solution for short haul.” Galanopoulos said hydrogen-powered aircraft would be a more sustainable option in the long-term.

Commenting on eVTOLs, he added: “We will be looking at that. We have had conversations but nothing is set as yet. We have spoken to the people at Lilium and we are following all of those projects quite closely.”

Galanopoulos spoke to FINN during an event at Biggin Hill Airport where the company unveiled the Praetor 600, which is now available for charter.

The aircraft has a nonstop range of 4,000 nautical miles (4,600 miles) and can fly from a runway as short as 3,000 feet, facilitating flights to popular intercontinental routes such as London to New York or Dubai, as well as São Paulo to Miami. 

“The Praetor is a unique aircraft, it sits in the middle of the larger cabin, long-range jets, and the smaller midsize jets. We see it as a super-midsize, with a great range,” he said.

“It is a sensible aircraft, you have the range of a Legacy 650, 4,000nm range, but you have got a pretty compact cabin.

“For business aviation, passenger loads are between two and three passengers per trip, quite often it is seen as a waste to charter a 13-seater to go across the Atlantic. The Praetor can do the same thing with much better economics.”

Commenting on the outlook for the year ahead, Galanopoulos said: “After Covid, everything took off, everyone wanted to fly, there was a lot more demand and supply. In 2023, as we expected, it started to tail off. 2024 is going to be a hard year, I don’t think it is going to be an exciting year for business aviation.

“We have problems with the economy, we have two wars which obviously affect the whole world market, so we don’t expect it to be a great year, but it will probably be steady. Hopefully from 2025 onwards we will start seeing some steady growth.”
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