Customers Consider Canceling Private Jet Orders As Flight Shaming Escalates


Just weeks after French billionaire Bernard Arnault announced he had sold his private jet to avoid trackers who were climate shaming the head of luxury goods group LMVH; a Bombardier executive says the Canadian manufacturer is seeing an increase in customers who are considering canceling or postponing orders. They are asking what Bombardier and the industry are doing to be more sustainable.

Speaking at the Corporate Jet Investor conference in Miami, Ève Laurier, Vice President, Communications, Marketing and Public Affairs, told attendees that the Montreal-based OEM has customers who are apprehensive about finalizing deals.

ADVERTISEMENT

She says the recent crescendo of negative headlines is causing customers to ask more questions about sustainability. Some of that pressure comes from their own families. And she says the problem is not limited to Bombardier.

The annual gathering draws around 800 senior industry executives from aircraft manufacturers like Bombardier, Textron and Embraer, flight providers NetJets, Flexjet, Vista Global and Wheels Up, and other big names from engine maker Rolls Royce to Gogo Business Aviation, which offers inflight connectivity.

Speaking on a panel titled “The March Towards Sustainable Aviation,” Laurier told delegates, “The perception problem is being accelerated. We have clients calling who are thinking about canceling their airplanes. There’s a huge perception issue.”

ADVERTISEMENT

So far, no orders have been canceled, and Laurier says Bombardier welcomes the tough conversations. She says it allows the OEM to explain initiatives from its Environmental Product Declarations to cabin interior options using sustainable materials and the ability to use SAF, sustainable aviation fuel, which can cut carbon emissions by up to 80%.

As an example, she says, one prospect told the company his children were concerned they would “be in shamed in school” for their father’s private jet.

After a visit to the company’s production line, and once they saw firsthand how Bombardier has been working to make private flying sustainable, Laurier says the father went ahead and ordered the airplane, one of its Global 7500s that retails for around $75 million.

While recent press hitting everyone from Arnault to Kylie Jenner and Taylor Swift has increased attention, it’s something the company was prepared to deal with.

“There are two types of commentary. There is the commentary about the tracking. That’s new, and that’s creating new pressure. But this generation of young people coming up have always been concerned,” she says.

ADVERTISEMENT

Laurier adds, while the negative attention is “difficult,” it’s beneficial to have the conversations. “The younger generation, they have sustainability at the forefront, and they influence their parents, so it’s important that we welcome them, and answer their questions and that we are super transparent.”

Earlier this month, Bombardier and Signature Aviation announced a multiyear agreement for the purchase of SAF based on the Book and Claim system. The deal covers all of Bombardier’s flight operations starting in January 2023. The OEMs decision will reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions from fuel by approximately 25%.

So far, the flight shaming hasn’t cost the company any deals. “People are saying, ‘What can we do?’” However, at the end of the day, Laurier tells Forbes, “People who want to fly privately are continuing to fly privately.”

ADVERTISEMENT

During the same conference, Patrick Gallagher, President of NetJets, a unit of Berkshire Hathaway, told the audience the fractional share provider has sold out all of its delivery slots until 2024. The deals are backed by non-refundable 20% deposits. It’s expecting to add 100 new private jets to its fleet in 2023.



Source link

Denial of responsibility! galaxyconcerns is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.

Leave A Reply

Your email address will not be published.