Story ID: 1062414alerts
Directional Consolidates Charter Brokering Under Skyjet
By: Chad Trautvetter
Caption: Charter broker activities for Directional Aviation’s Sentient Jet, Flexjet and Flight Options brands are consolidated into Skyjet, a new subsidiary.
Word Count: 198
Directional Aviation consolidated charter broker activities from wholly owned Sentient Jet, Flexjet and Flight Options yesterday under Skyjet, a new subsidiary. Greg Richman, who is president at the division, said the Skyjet brand was a “hidden gem” in Directional’s acquisition of Flexjet in December.

Bombardier Flexjet bought Skyjet in 2000, three years after the charter broker was started, but sold Skyjet International to VistaJet in 2008 and subsequently shelved the U.S. division of Skyjet. Since then, VistaJet absorbed Skyjet International into its operations and no longer uses the name. The U.S. division, which offered 25-, 50- and 100-hour jet cards in specific aircraft models before it went dormant, just faded into obscurity–until now, that is.

The new Skyjet, based in New York City with offices in Boston and Dallas, now employs 35 and is focusing on brokering on-demand charter flights, complementing the jet card business at sister company Sentient and the fractional aircraft offerings at Flexjet and Flight Options. Richman, who has been with Sentient Jet since 2004, said Skyjet already has a long list of vetted charter operators and “is serious about taking a big bite out of the charter market.”