Story ID: 
Air Charter Service Plans $15M Investment
By: Ian Sheppard
Caption: Company says “adapting the traditional brokerage model” with new web technology willl “enhance our customers’ experience.”
Word Count: 236
Surbiton, UK-based Air Charter Service (ACS) is investing £10 million ($15 million) in new online technologies over the next five years to enhance its charter booking service. Chris Leach, chairman and founder of ACS, said he doesn’t believe the charter brokering business will ever be replaced entirely by web technology, but that “adapting the traditional brokerage model” will “enhance our customers’ experience,” for example through the prices app ACS launched in 2013 that allowed customers to obtain instant charter quotes.

Initially, customers will see enhanced functionality on the company’s websites starting in the spring. “We are developing real-time customer information portals and are planning to investin other technology over the next few years,” said Leach, who added that the company has “many websites around the world in multiple languages, each tailored to the local marketplace and culture.

“Each office also has our custom-made charter bookings platform, [allowing ACS] to efficiently source aircraft anywhere in the world. We provide our customers with global solutions, not local gimmicks,” he said.

ACS was founded in 1990 and now has 18 offices worldwide with access to some 50,000 aircraft.

The company reported an “outstanding” 2014 with strong growth and around £300 million ($450 million) in sales. “We have always been a highly ambitious company and the board is hoping that this investment will keep us leading the technology race in the charter marketplace,” concluded Leach.