ANAC, Brazil's civil aviation agency, has granted Part 91K fractional share administrator approval to Avantto, the fractional aircraft provider announced Thursday. With over a decade of experience in the sector, Avantto has more than 450 active users, for whom its jets and helicopters perform more than 1,400 takeoffs per month.
This approval marks the third Part 91K approval for ANAC and the new Part 91K regulations. The first operator to receive ANAC Part 91K approval was Prime You in July 2022, followed by Amaro Aviation. Brazil's adoption of Part 91K rules reflects the need for a legal structure that allows users to jointly share an aircraft without jointly sharing liability.
In fact, Avantto participated in public hearings in 2015 and 2019, as well as “countless private sessions” with ANAC to develop a Brazilian fractional aircraft share model, the company said. The regulation clarifying rules and conditions for offering fractional aircraft shares was approved in February 2021.
Among the regulation’s major points are limitations in the number of shares per aircraft (16 for airplanes and 32 for helicopters), the definition of legal responsibility for aircraft operation, and stricter demands for pilot training, aircraft maintenance, and operational safety management systems.
ANAC’s Part 91K differs from that of the FAA’s. “Some adaptions were made for the cooperative-type structure of Brazilian operators, which doesn’t exist in the U.S.,” Avantto CEO Rogério Andrade told AIN. “The reporting requirements and so forth wouldn’t be burdensome for a Part 135 operator. Essentially, it raises the bar for Part 91K operators.”
Andrade described achieving the certification as “a long and tedious process, which took us more than a year and a half, with four or five audits of systems and security.” He continued, “The adaption would be burdensome for anyone who wants to move from Part 91 to 91K. I see 91K certification as a way to separate the wheat from the chaff, giving a stamp of approval from ANAC.”
Andrade said Avantto maintains high standards in all of its operations. “Security is number one in our business, as people’s lives are on the line. We just completed our IS-BAO Level 2 renewal audit and are still the only firm in South America with that [registration],” he said.
The Part 91K certification comes less than two months before Avantto will receive the first of 34 Epic 1000 GXs it has on order. It plans to offer fractional shares in these turboprop singles to the booming agribusiness market.
Asked if this timing is a coincidence, Andrade said, “It is. We’ve been working on 91K approval for a year and a half, and we’ve only been looking at the agricultural market for a year. We went to the field, talked to the customers, and listened to their needs. It’s only been six months since we picked the Epic as the best fit. Everything just came together at once.”