Story ID: 300NBAA19
Vista Global Touts 'Asset-Lite' Access Options
By: James Wynbrandt
Caption: Dubai-based holding company offers lift ranging from per-seat charter to leases on Bombardier’s flagship Global 7500. 
Word Count: 928
Vista Global (Booth N4235), the Dubai-based lift provider, arrives at NBAA with the spectrum of offerings—from per-seat charter to whole aircraft leasing—the company has assembled since its formation last September by VistaJet founder and now group chairman Thomas Flohr. Created as a holding company for its “asset-lite” access offerings, Vista Global has since purchased charter operator XOJet and charter broker and mobile app developer JetSmarter and combined them into XO. Its marquis VistaJet charter and newly established Vista Lease programs, meanwhile, are preparing to welcome Bombardier’s flagship Global 7500 to their fleets.

The Vista contingent is hosting its largest NBAA exhibit to date, but has no aircraft on static display, citing the peak demand season in which NBAA is staged.

XOJet dominated the U.S. mid- and super-mid-cabin charter market with its owned and operated Challenger 300s and Citation Xs; JetSmarter and its instant booking app rekindled the per-seat charter market, but the membership-model program drew negative publicity and lawsuits before the Vista Global purchase.
Facilitating a Lifestyle
“The market has deeply understood the benefits of combining XOJet, with its fleet and reputation, and the technology we inherited from JetSmarter,” Flohr—who is not in attendance—told AIN shortly before the Las Vegas gathering. “It’s now the place for instant satisfaction: You can book an airplane, or book your seats, backed up by a global operator under the Vista Global umbrella.” The bottom line results, he said: “We’re signing memberships at a record pace, and bringing back old members.”

In the last 12 months, Vista Global flight revenues have totaled more than $1 billion of an estimated global spend of $11 billion for business aviation lift, Flohr said.

Danielle Talbott is now XO executive v-p of sales for North America, while James Blake handles that role for Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. Former XOJet CEO Bradley Stewart has moved on, and JetSmarter founder and CEO Sergey Petrossov, formerly the company’s very visible face, remains in an advisory capacity, Flohr added.

The Global 7500's arrival, however, is Vista Global’s big news in Las Vegas. The holding company ordered 30 of the aircraft—claimed as the world’s largest and longest-range purpose-built business jet—with multi-year deliveries beginning late this annum. The jets will be placed with either VistaJet or Vista Lease, based on their respective demands, with VistaJet taking its first jet in early January.

“We’d love to have it earlier,” said VistaJet COO Ian Moore, while stressing the white-glove charter operator has “no obligation to take any” beyond what it wants. VistaJet will be the first to operate the 7500 commercially, and the program is “positioned for seamless introduction,” Moore said. Upward migrating current customers will be first aboard, and given the 7500’s long legs—some 7,900 nm of range—block time program minimum may be in the 150- to 200-hour range, rather than the current 100 hours for its now-flagship Global 6000. The interior color scheme will borrow from textural elements and the cool neutral palette in its Challenger 850s. In an example of the group’s synergies, VistaJet will support Vista Lease’s Global 7500 customers, whether they’re seeking charter revenue or need supplemental lift when their own jet is unavailable.

Meanwhile, the division maintains its focus on “tapping into our members’ passion,” said Moore. “It’s more than just moving people from A to B. We’re facilitating and aiding their lifestyle,” he said, pointing to VistaJet’s onboard wine program; Adventures in the Sky children’s program; and pets program. (“One of every four flights involves pets,” he noted). Concurrently the company has enhanced back-office and customer service operations with JetSmarter technology, allowing customers to, for example, “order food and wine seamlessly on the app,” he said.
Growth Potential
For some years VistaJet regularly touted double-digit percentage growth in membership and flight hours, but since the group’s restructuring, “We’ve scaled back from reporting quarterly,” a “more mature” approach, said Moore. He noted, though, the company grew 25 percent last year in its total flights; actual numbers are undisclosed.

The Bombardier Global’s thunder aside, Flohr insisted that “per-seat [charter] gets an equal push” at NBAA, as a strategic element in the group’s growth plan.

“The type of clientele who do that [book per seat, or allow crowdsourced seats on their scheduled charters] aren’t necessarily lesser economic individuals,” Flohr said. “If they’re flying A to B, they may want to defray and be reasonable about costs.”

The group plans to expand XO outside the U.S., but may delay roll-out of its per-seat offering internationally, as the shared-cabin concept is largely unknown beyond U.S. borders, Flohr said, and XO will mount a “significant” marketing campaign to educate potential customers. “There’s got to be more awareness; we want the world to know this exists.”

When announcing the JetSmarter purchase in April, Flohr told AIN the broker’s app and technology were its primary appeal, and that he’d had an “open mind” about the potential of per-seat charter. But, “Now I’m deeply convinced of all the user benefits of allowing [clients] to crowdsource and buy seats, and get instant confirmation,” he said. That’s the key: instant booking—taking money off their deposit. That’s what the industry wants. We feel this demand is not only an irreversible trend but an irreversible pathway. The digitalization of this industry is massively underway.”