‘Operation Long Reach’ are three words that have been buzzing around the office recently for many good and bad reasons. As usually the good reasons are only mentioned once (or maybe twice) usually involving praise for an operator who grasped the concept of Stratajet easily and signed up without hesitation. The bad reasons however have been reverberated by the accounts team to the point where travelling to a new European country everyday for work sounds like something one would only undertake as a mild form of torture. Terrible accommodations, flying close to mountains in an old rickety propeller aircraft, and frantically running around trying not to miss appointments; flights and trains. So you can imagine my reaction upon hearing l have been given the privilege of joining the team for an Operation Long Reach trip.

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Amsterdam

We flew to Amsterdam for a meeting with ASL & Jet Netherlands. Landing VFR at Schiphol was a bit of a crazy experience as there are numerous runways to choose from. On the ground we were met by KLM Jet Service who provided excellent service in nice surroundings. We learnt that the two operators had merged the previous year and are based in Belgium and Netherlands.

After a nice meeting we ventured in to the heart of Amsterdam for a lovely break overlooking the river Amstel. We stayed in a nice quite modern apartment where hummus, crisps and ice cream was endeavoured before sleeping to Pearl Harbour.

The Chieftain parked @ Amsterdam Schiphol

Genèva Day 1

The flight from Amsterdam to Genèva was really nice and we had a beautiful approach in stunning weather. After a successful rental car escape to the French side, we arrived at our destination. Rex, however there was no house. After a phone conversation with the letter we realized we had been taken for fools, she used a closer town to get guests and we now had to drive 30 min up winding and steep mountain roads. Finally we arrived and the drive had been worth it, the view was amazing.

Final Approach to Geneva

Geneva Day 2

Meetings all day but what we had not considered after our meeting with AmJet in the city center was that on top of the already terrible traffic in Geneva there was a marathon and all the roads were closed. The 31 minute drive was suddenly 180 minutes, luckily we enjoy each others company.

Geneva Day 3

Before turning back home to London we had a meeting with PrivateAir which was refreshing and very interesting. We were sad to leave Geneva but on crossing the channel and approaching the white cliffs of Dover we were also very happy to be back home, if only for a few days.

Operation Long Reach in Germany was taken on in characteristically German style: efficiently. Five airfields, six operators, three days. The team started the week off talking to Star Wings in Dortmund. After a successful meeting, we made our way to Mainz where we would spend the night and meet with AirGO the following day.

AirGO’s reputation preceded them and as expected, they did not fail to impress. The AirGO team challenged our CEO, Jonny with a multitude of questions that inspired us to present our software with meticulous detail. We live for the opportunity to showcase how robust the Stratafleet platform is and especially highlighted how our technology offers a more efficient and accurate solution. We then quickly regrouped before setting off to a meeting with MACH Airlines in Frankfurt and were pleased to discuss how Stratajet’s advanced technology is paving a more positive future for the industry. Jonny was also (very evidently) excited by the fact that he was speaking to a fellow pilot and so the meeting quickly took a more relaxed turn. As we parted ways, our team headed back to the Chieftain and took off for Stuttgart.

On Wednesday morning, Stratajet’s operator liaison team met up with SFD and had an interesting conversation about the end consumer in private aviation. We discussed how the industry is shrinking and the unfortunate reality facing consumers; they are either not being communicated to effectively or are being offset by the booking process. Cue Stratajet. The end consumer is at the core of everything we do. Our mission is to expand private aviation by making it more accessible, convenient and efficient. If you, just like SFD, are not convinced initially, I guarantee that one conversation with Jonny will change your mind. The challenge of consolidating an entire industry with a view to growth, is the essence of Stratajet’s business. We took a step back from demoing the Stratafleet platform with SFD to speak instead, about our vision.

Finally, we made our way to Munich to meet with MHS Aviation. As commonly found among operators, the sales team were aviation veterans. This enabled us to discuss Stratafleet and its benefits at a more sophisticated level, which led to yet another successful meeting. We also met with Air Independence who despite having such a busy day made time for us to sit with them and talk about Stratajet.

The week wasn’t finished yet. As soon as our last meeting was completed in Munich we were off to Salzburg.

The Paris Air Show boasts a display of some of the most advanced aircraft being pushed to their limits- including our very own Piper Chieftain! After flying over to Paris on Monday morning, the Stratajet team spent the afternoon being hosted by Landmark Aviation and happily watched the displays. We then met with iXAir, which with their high quality service and ability to fulfil requests at short notice, will be a welcome addition to the Stratajet platform.

Monday night was spent in an Air BnB north of Paris Le Bourget. It was a fantastic little flat and CEO Jonny Nicol promised us his famous spaghetti bolognaise, the much sought after recipe for which is as follows:

1. Pour glass of red wine
2. Find comfy chair
3. Instruct willing account manager to make spaghetti bolognaise - genius!

On Tuesday we met with Sky Valet and Aerovision before jumping back on the Chieftain and making our way to Zurich. The views were spectacular, as was Jonny’s landing; sandwiched between several large jets that must have found our little Chieftain dropping out of the sky and onto the runway quite amusing/impressive!

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