Category Archives: Editorials

Angel Flights

Elevate and the entire Tempus family believe in using air travel as a platform for good. From humanitarian missions in Africa to moving doctors during medical emergencies, Tempus has built a company culture of outreach and assistance.

The following is an excerpt from a feature article published in the TEMPUS magazine spring 2015 issue.

Angel Flights: A volunteer group of pilots fly missions critical to medical needs of those less fortunate.

Angel Flight West was founded in 1983 as the Los Angeles chapter of the American Medical Support Flight Team. It links volunteer pilots in private aircraft and, when necessary, commercial airline partners like Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, with folks in need—and that need can take any number of forms. More often than not it is required medical care, but it can also be anything from a military combat veteran taking part in a therapeutic program to someone escaping the nightmare of domestic violence. Angel Flight West is even the “official airline” for a number of children’s special needs camps.

Aircraft owners and pilots volunteer their aircraft and time to help people get the care they need.

“Transportation is the biggest barrier to health care after cost,” explains Josh Olson, executive director of Angel Flight West. “Not only do we remove that barrier by providing donated flights at no cost to our passengers, but we come alongside those we serve and provide compassion and care by doing what we love—flying.

“Our volunteer pilots are incredible. They range from commercial airline pilots to Fortune 500 CEOs, from retired physicians to gearheads that scrape together their discretionary income to fly once a month. There is this misperception that private pilots are the evil ‘one percent.’ That’s just not true; on the contrary, AFW volunteer pilots are incredibly generous individuals that love to fly and love to help others who are less fortunate.”

Olson also points out how critical a role AFW can play in the actual treatment process. “We hear all the time from our passengers how meaningful these flights are to their medical treatment,” he says. “However, we hear more often how the actual flight itself is part of the healing process for them. Some have such compromised immune systems that they can’t fly on commercial airplanes or endure lengthy ground transportation. The fact that someone takes time out of their busy schedule to help them in a season in life that is completely overwhelming physically, emotionally, and financially is hugely impactful on their lives. Even having the opportunity to be above the clouds for a couple of hours in a hectic week is therapeutic for them.”

Whether medical care or disaster relief, private aircraft are a life line of support.

Today, volunteer pilots fly for a vast array of causes and reasons. Some, like Angel Flight and its sister organizations Airlift Hope and Mercy Flight Southeast, and LifeLine Pilots, focus mainly on medical and urgent transport needs. Others are devoted to disaster response and relief, animal rescue, endangered species relocation, awareness of environmental concerns, children’s causes, and even domestic violence evacuation. What these groups all have in common are volunteer pilots who donate their time, aircraft, and flight expenses for the aid and betterment of the cause or causes they wish to assist.

Want to learn more or volunteer? Air Charity Network’s Website

Learn more about Tempus’ citizenship programs.

Excerpts taken from full article that was originally published in TEMPUS Spring 2015 issue written by Scott Walsh.

What’s New in Aircraft for 2015?

The Elevate program focuses on the PC-12. The versatility and performance of the PC-12 are second to none, but we always like to keep our members apprised of new trends in aircraft. No matter the size, the private aircraft theme for 2015 is a combination of advanced technology, increased range, personal comfort and customization. Here are a few of the most exciting models available now or for pre-order.

Pilatus PC-24

Available in 2017, the Pilatus PC-24 is a jack-of-all-trades, combining the versatility of a turboprop with the performance of a light jet. Much like the Swiss manufacture’s PC-12 turboprop, the PC-24 includes a rear cargo door, a cabin designed for quick and easy configuration, and “off-road” capability on short, unpaved runways. The short field performance is similar to a turboprop but the 489 mph maximum cruising speed and 2,244 mile range is all jet.

Price: $8.9 million Range: 2,200 miles Passenger Seats: 8+ depending on configuration

Pilatus PC-24

Cessna Citation Latitude

Even though it’s billed as a midsize business jet, the Latitude feels wide and spacious. Boasting a six-foot ceiling and nearly 6.5-foot width, the jet has an expansive feel that is further enhanced by a new window design that is 30% larger than typical Citation windows. The cabin seats nine in a club configuration along with two forward facing seats in the back. And with the wireless Clarity cabin management system, passengers may use their smartphones to control lighting, temperature and entertainment.

Price: $14.9 million Range: 3,100 miles Passenger Seats: 9 Available: 2015

Cessna Citation Latitude

Embraer Legacy 450

Brazilian company, Embraer, is fairly new to the business jet market but that hasn’t stopped them from dubbing the Legacy 450 a “game-changer.” The midsize 450 will seat up to nine in a six-foot tall, flat floor cabin, which will include two fully berthable club seat options that recline flat to create beds. The 450 will also be the first jet in its class to feature fly-by-wire controls, which uses electrical computer-monitors systems to control the aircraft’s rudders and wing flaps. According to Embraer, this technology creates one of the smoothest rides available.

Price: $15.25 million Range: 2,900 miles Passenger Seats: 7 Available: 2015

Embraer Legacy 450

Bombardier Global 7000

Launched in 2010, Bombardier’s Global 7000 program promised to develop “the ultimate” purpose-built large-cabin, ultra long-range business jet – uncompromising in comfort, utility and range. The 7000 features a four zone cabin that can be tailored into countless configurations of distinct working and living areas including an aft “home-like” master bedroom. Lighting, ergonomics and woodworking have been benchmarked against ultra-high-end automobiles such as Rolls Royce and Bentley. And with a fuselage measuring 111 feet and a wingspan of 104 feet, the 7000 comes just a few feet shy of the footprint of a Boeing 737.

Price: $72.4 million Range: 8,400 miles Passenger Seats: 10-19 Available: 2016

Bombardier Global 7000

Dassault Falcon 8X

With over 30 different floor plans including several lavatory layouts and three different galley sizes, the Dassault Falcon 8X offers the industry’s most flexible cabin. Entertainment and cabin management come in the form of the FalconCabin HD+ which connects with Apple devices to allow passengers to track flight progress and control the environment from anywhere in the cabin. The ultra-long range of the 8X connects Hong Kong and Paris, New York and Dubai, Los Angeles and Beijing. And with approach capability of up to 6 degrees, the 8X can serve challenging airports such as Long City Airport and Lugano, Switzerland that are normally not accessible to large cabin aircraft.

Price: $58 million Range: 7,400 miles Passenger Seats: 8 Available: 2016

Dassault Falcon 8X

Gulfstream G650ER

Although it shares the same cockpit, avionics and systems as the G650 the G650ER can carry an extra 4,000 pounds of fuel extending the aircraft’s range by 575 miles – which translates to 8,600 miles at Mach 0.85. According to Gulfstream this gives the ER the longest legs of any business jet, taking passengers from New York to Hong Kong or Dallas to Dubai, nonstop. While the jet’s 47-foot-long cabin comfortably seats up to 18 passengers, owners can choose from 12 available floor plans or create their own custom layout.

Price: $66.5 million Range: 8,600 miles Passenger Seats: Up to 18 Available: 2015

Gulfstream G650ER

Air Travel: A Tale of Two Philosophies

The dramatic drop in oil prices over the past nine months should be cause for celebration within the airline industry. A 50 percent reduction of the most significant expense item in any business is a profit driver, and jet fuel is no different. Air carriers around the world, however, have been slow to show excitement about strong earnings over the past two quarters. Why the cautious approach; why no increase in routes or reductions in fares?

I’m not an expert in airline operations, but I am an expert in airplanes, and having run a jet charter business for the last eight years, I have learned a great deal about the traveling public. My view is that we are seeing the beginning of a significant change in the way that customers select their air carrier, and the U.S. mainline carriers are going to be on the bad end of the deal.

My opinion is that the traveling public is dramatically and rapidly approaching a state of play in which there are two distinct groups—the “value” customer and the “value added” customer.

Low-cost carriers (LCCs) are thriving both within the United States and internationally. Look no further than Southwest Airlines in the USA and easyJet in Europe. There are more examples—Spirit Airlines, Allegiant Air, Ryanair, JetBlue, AirAsia, and the list goes on. Customers on these airlines are the “value” sector. Value customers know that they are getting no frills, à la carte pricing, usually twenty-nine-inch seat pitch, crowded gates, and most important, low fares—or at least the perception of low fares.

On the other end, those who can afford it are finding more and more ways to avoid the airlines—particularly domestically in the United States. The private jet charter business has never been as active as it is today. New “travel member clubs” such as Wheels Up, Surf Air, Rise, and others are popping up, selling tickets and raising lots of capital. These carriers provide a “value added” service to include concierge services, private terminals, direct flights between small airports, new aircraft with excellent amenities, and most important, customer service that is respectful, genuine, and targeted toward the business and premium-seat traveler.

“We are seeing the beginning of a significant change in the way that customers select their air carrier.” Scott Terry, CEO, TEMPUS Inc.

Large, established air carriers in the USA are consolidating, reducing domestic routes, and putting more emphasis on international operations while some European carriers such as Air France–KLM are facing significant financial problems and identity crises as never before. The pressure on the traditional mainline carriers is coming from all fronts. The LCCs are doing their damage, but an even larger threat is coming from the Middle Eastern and Asian flag carriers whose commitment to impeccable customer service, new equipment, and expanding route structures is stealing business and premium-seat travelers by the thousands.

The result is confusion and hesitation with the mainline carriers. I’m sure that Richard Anderson, the CEO of Delta Air Lines, a man who seems to speak his mind quite freely, would say that his company has a solid strategy to maximize shareholder value in today’s competitive environment. However, if Delta’s best strategy is to lobby the U.S. government to pull every legislative trick in the book to restrict new entrants in the U.S. market (for example, Norwegian long-haul LCC) and premium-service providers (such as Emirates and Etihad), perhaps Anderson should look in the mirror first. No U.S. carrier, with the possible exception of Virgin America, can remotely compare their customer service and in-flight amenities to those of the Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacifics of the world.

Another interesting move by U.S. mainline carriers is the continuous reduction in services in the Lower 48. So many communities have been cut from the route structures of the consolidating carriers that the U.S. government’s Essential Air Service subsidy program is a growth industry within the American aviation market. Smaller carriers are finding ample opportunities for profitable operations by taking federal subsidies to ensure that as many Americans as possible have access to commercial air service.

The U.S. flag carriers cannot survive long term by continuing to attempt to be all things to all people. It is clear that by dropping thin domestic routes with in their hub and spoke system and adding international service, the big three (Delta, American, United) are betting on lucrative long-haul routes and have given up on the “value” traveler. But unless the big three attack the service element that travel member clubs and foreign major carriers have perfected, this big bet may result in U.S. flag carriers that will become as irrelevant as Air

France–KLM is now.

In an industry that thrives on the status quo, the success of alternative methods of air travel, whether it’s a sixty-nine-dollar fare on Spirit, a private three-room suite on the upper deck of an Airbus A380 from Etihad, or a trip on a private King Air 350 from Dallas to Midland and back on your schedule, is a clear and present danger to the air carrier establishment. As time marches on, it appears that carriers must select an air traveler philosophy to which they should attach themselves. Sort of like American politics in this day and age, I guess—it’s red or blue and not a whole lot in the middle. Whatever the decision, the price of a gallon of jet fuel seems to be the least of the worries, or excitement, for U.S. mainline air carriers.

Originally appeared in TEMPUS magazine Spring 2015 issue.