Market Intelligence: LATAM

New Brazilian Operator, Avion Express Brasil, to Commence ACMI Operations in Q4 2024

Avion Express Brasil, part of Avia Solutions Group – the world’s largest ACMI operator, announced the start of the Phase 3 of the certification process for its Air Operator’s Certificate (AOC) in Brazil. Recently the Brazilian National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) approved the finalization of Phase 2 of the certification process.

In the coming weeks, Avion Express Brasil is expected to receive feedback on its manuals and other documentation already submitted to ANAC. This is anticipated to lead to the successful conclusion of Phase 3 and the completion of the AOC certification process this year, allowing the airline to commence ACMI operations in Q4 2024.

Counting 19 years in operations, Avion Express, an ACMI (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance) airline, has two AOCs – as issued by Lithuania and Malta. The airline has undertaken an ambitious expansion project to strengthen its presence in the Latin American market with its subsidiary in Brazil, following recent collaborations with airline partners in other countries of the region, including Mexico, Chile, and Dominican Republic.

Darius Kajokas, Avion Express CEO, highlights the company’s strategic intent to expand its global presence. He states, “Avion Express has firmly established itself in Europe, and to make sure we continue growing, our strategic focus in past several years extends to other markets, including The Americas, Asia, Africa, and other regions. ACMI would be rather novel business model in the Brazilian market, which has more than 100 million passengers per annum. Avion Express Brasil aims to commence operations with up to 10 aircraft, with plans to scale up to 25 aircraft by 2027/2028.”

Specializing in narrow-body ACMI operations, Avion Express now operates a fleet of over 50 Airbus A320 family aircraft. Customer airlines of Avion Express include Air France-KLM Group airlines, British Airways Group airlines, Lufthansa Group airlines, SKY Airline, SunExpress, TUI, VivaAerobus, Wizzair, and many others. The company currently has a team of over 1,700 professionals and more than 17 bases globally.

Avion Express is part of Avia Solutions Group – the world’s largest ACMI service company group, which operates a fleet of 212 aircraft. Companies belonging to the group also provide a variety of other aviation services, such as aircraft repair, pilot and crew training, and ground handling.

Source: Avion Express Brasil
Photo Credit:Avion Express Brasil

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World’s Largest ACMI Provider and Aviation Conglomerate Avia Solutions Group Records 2023 EBITDA of EUR 392 Million

Avia Solutions Group, the world’s largest ACMI provider (Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance, and Insurance) services and owner of global pilot training group BAA Training, announced its audited financial results for 2023, reporting a net profit increase of 5.5 times to EUR 68.2 million, adjusted EBITDA up by 36% to EUR 392 million, and revenues rising by 22% to EUR 2.3 billion. The company generated the most revenue in Europe (67%), Asia (20%), and North and South America (6%).

Last year, the Group continued to invest in its fleet, expanding it by 27 aircraft to a total of 200, including 159 passenger and 41 cargo aircraft by the end of the year.

In 2023, the Group’s revenues from passenger aircraft ACMI services increased by 53%, reaching EUR 950 million. According to Jonas Janukenas, CEO of Avia Solutions Group, the significant increase in volumes indicates that many of the world’s leading airlines view ACMI services as an integral part of their operations, helping to manage their fleets more efficiently. The situation in the passenger aircraft market ensures that the Group will maintain high growth rates in the future.

Last year, Avia Solutions Group continued its expansion in the Asia-Pacific region, starting operations with BBN Airlines Indonesia and acquiring the Australian airline Skytrans at the beginning of 2024. By the end of 2024, the company plans to establish four more ACMI airlines in Brazil, the Philippines, Thailand, and Malaysia.

The company is preparing to further expand its aircraft fleet and maintain leading positions in the ACMI segment, where it sees a significant market need. The company’s infrastructure in Asia and the Pacific region, as well as in the Americas, will allow it to effectively manage the challenges of seasonality in aviation by shifting aircraft from one region to another.

“The Group will utilise aircraft in Europe during the summer peak season, and during the winter, the planes will be relocated to regions with opposite seasonality. This will allow us to maximise the capabilities of our aircraft fleet, and our clients, the world’s leading airlines, will receive aircraft during the peak seasonal periods,” states J. Janukenas.

The American market is also a priority for the company. Recently, the company signed a cooperation agreement with Impact Investments LLC, whose executive chairman is the former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. The company will provide strategic development consulting to the Group.

Avia Solutions Group, based in Ireland, has offices in Ireland, the USA, the UAE, Lithuania, Australia, the Asia-Pacific region, and South Africa. The Group owns globally operating airline companies such as SmartLynx Airlines, Avion Express, AirExplore, KlasJet, and Magma Aviation. It also manages the aircraft maintenance and repair services (MRO) company FL Technics, which has aircraft technical maintenance and repair hangars in Indonesia, the United Kingdom, and Lithuania, along with 100 operational maintenance stations in various countries. Among the Group’s companies is the largest independent pilot training center, BAA Training, with pilot schools in Spain, France, Lithuania, and Vietnam.

The Avia Solutions Group team comprises over 11,700 highly qualified aviation professionals worldwide.

Source: Avia Solutions Group
Photo Credit: Avia Solutions Group

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Airbus Announces Commercial Aircraft Orders and Deliveries for the Month of April 2024

In April 2024, European aircraft manufacturer Airbus:

  • Delivered 61 aircraft to 33 customers
    • 3 A220-300
    • 22 A320neo
    • 29 A321neo
    • 1 A330-900
    • 6 A350-900
  • Secured 57 orders
    • 3 A320neo
    • 53 A321neo
    • 1 A350-900
  • Year to date Airbus has delivered 203 aircraft to 52 customers.

AFM Team Note – kindly contact us for a detailed excel breakdown of orders and deliveries by airline.

See last month’s order here.

Source: Airbus
Photo Credit: Airbus

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Training Aircraft Manufacturer Cirrus Aircraft Appoints Director International Sales Development

United States headquartered aircraft manufacturer Cirrus Aircraft, which manufacturers the popular SR22 and TRAC20 aircraft used by numerous pilot training organisations such as Emirates Flight Training Academy, United Aviate Academy, European Flight Academy and many more, has appointed Edo Santema as Director International Sales Development. To learn more about Cirrus Aircraft or connect with Mr Santema – visit his LinkedIn profile.

Source: Edo Santema (Cirrus Aircraft)
Photo Credit: Cirrus Aircraft

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Flight Training Management Software Provider, FlightLogger, Utilised by Over 100,000

FlightLogger, a leader in flight training management software, is thrilled to announce a major milestone in its journey of empowering the aviation and pilot training community. Over the past thirteen years, FlightLogger has become the trusted choice for flight training organizations worldwide, welcoming over a hundred thousand users to its platform.

At the beginning of 2024 FlightLogger announced a series of significant milestones achieved in the year 2023, marking a year of substantial growth and innovation.

Global expansion and clientele success

In 2023, FlightLogger proudly surpassed its client acquisition goal, reaching 182 clients worldwide, exceeding the initial target of 180. This expansion has not only solidified their global presence but also diversified their client base across 45 countries on six continents.

Among those who have joined FlightLogger, the company is proud to highlight new collaborations with some of the most prestigious flight training organizations: Sevenair Academy and Airways Aviation in Europe, RMIT University in Australia – the second largest university in the country, and Utah State University in the United States. Together with the many other training organizations who joined FlightLogger in 2023, these partnerships underscore the company’s commitment to delivering top-tier SaaS solutions to the world’s leading aviation training providers.

Internal Team Expansion and Specialized Roles

2023 has been a transformative year for FlightLogger, characterized by strategic internal growth. A significant development was the addition of a Product Manager to their team, a critical step in enhancing the development of their SaaS product. Additionally, FlightLogger expanded their development and client success teams, a move crucial for supporting their growing client base and maintaining their excellence in service and support.

In response to their expanding client base, FlightLogger has increased their development and client success teams. This enhancement not only supports their growth trajectory but also ensures that FlightLogger maintains their high standards of client service and support. This commitment to customer satisfaction is reflected in their Capterra reviews, where the company boast an average overall rating of 4.6 out of 5, with an exceptional 4.85 in customer service. This feedback underlines their dedication to providing exceptional service and a user-friendly experience.

Innovative integrations for enhanced operations

Last year, FlightLogger intensified their focus on integrations as a strategic component of their growth plan. FlightLogger successfully integrated with several key platforms to provide comprehensive and streamlined solutions to their clients:

  • Aeroplanned: For advanced long-term planning capabilities, enhancing operational efficiency.
  • Wingops and SAM: These integrations offer robust aircraft maintenance management, ensuring safety and compliance.
  • Quickbooks: Integration with Quickbooks facilitates streamlined and efficient billing processes, simplifying financial management for their clients.

These integrations represent FlightLogger’s commitment to providing a holistic and efficient operational experience for flight training organizations.

Impressive usage statistics

The effectiveness and reach of FlightLogger are underscored by their impressive usage statistics. Currently, FlightLogger proudly serves 93,000 users globally.

In 2023, a remarkable 819,000 flights were logged, and 1,100,000 bookings were made through their platform, marking a 27% increase from the previous year. These numbers are a testament to the trust and reliance placed in FlightLogger’s software by the flight training community.

Source: FlightLogger
Photo Credit: FlightLogger

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Training Aircraft Manufacturer Tecnam P-Mentor Achieves United States of America FAA Certificate

Capua, Italy – Training aircraft manufacturer Tecnam announced today that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has awarded full Type Certificate to the P-MENTOR with the number A00067IB for Part 23 of the FAA Regulations.

Tecnam is now on track to begin deliveries to flight schools across the United States, starting with the first (20) to HCH Aviation in partnership with Stephen F. Austin State University in Austin, Texas, followed by Kilo Charlie Aviation in New Century, Kansas and EpicSky Flight Academy in Des Moines, Iowa.

About the P-Mentor
The P-Mentor is a two-seat aircraft, powered by the Rotax 912isC3, featuring the Garmin G3X IFR touch screen suite with PBN/RNAV/AFCS capabilities, compliant with the latest CS-23 EASA & FAA amendments. The Mentor is a turnkey solution for many flight schools to train students from their first flight up to their CPL-IR on a single platform. With a variable pitch propeller, a simulated retractable landing gear and an optional ballistic parachute, the P-Mentor has everything flight schools are looking for in today’s market. The P-Mentor is designed to offer the best human-machine interface, resulting in the most effective and efficient VFR/IFR training. The generous fuel capacity will allow flight schools to fly all day without refueling, which improves operational value. The P-Mentor’s fuel consumption is just 3.70 US Gal/h (14 lt/h) contributing to a very low cost of operations averaging $65 per hour.

The P-Mentor allows complete PPL, IR and UPRT training, with approved PBN/RNAV as well as AFCS: the entire training syllabus with unprecedented fuel consumption and emissions, further enhancing the renowned profitability of Tecnam-made fleet.

The entry into service of the P-MENTOR two-seater IFR training aircraft has been eagerly awaited by a large number of flight schools who have been demanding a replacement for the many hundreds of “legacy” FAR23/CS23 IFR training aircraft currently in service around the world. This aircraft will open up many profitable opportunities within the flight training market and revolutionize the training paradigm.

With the P-Mentor, Tecnam is once again confirming its leadership in flight training while innovating the market and raising the standards. This important certification milestone will create and secure new and significant revenue streams for Tecnam, built on a foundation of over 75 years of aircraft manufacturing.

To date, more than a hundred P-Mentors have been delivered in (18) countries around the world, proving that this platform fits different business plans in different weather environments. Flight schools are changing the composition of their fleet, using the P-Mentor for initial and IFR training and the P2006T for multi-engine training.

Tecnam’s Managing Director, Giovanni Pascale Langer says: “The FAA certification of the P-MENTOR is another significant milestone for the Tecnam team. We look forward to working with all US flight schools to improve the quality of training and help them keep hourly rates low.”

The Tecnam fleet is perfect for the today modern school as their aircraft offer the best efficiency, performance and value while meeting the latest certification standards with a unique feature as ‘the greenest fleet on the market. Efficiency that also means very low CO2 emissions. Recent study shows that flight schools operating with TECNAM single and twin-engine fleet can reduce emissions by up to 60%: 10 tons of CO2 for each student by the time they receive their Commercial Pilot License.

About TECNAM; “Quality Aircraft since 1948”
Tecnam is an Italian aircraft manufacturer and one of the world’s leading piston aircraft manufacturers. Founded in 1948 by brothers Luigi and Giovanni Pascale, the company is headquartered in Capua, Italy, and operates two subsidiaries in Sebring, Florida, USA, and Brisbane, Australia, to serve and support the needs of local Tecnam owners and operators. Tecnam designs and manufactures a wide range of aircraft for personal use, commercial operations, business travel, flight training, surveillance, law enforcement and other specialised applications.

Source: Tecnam

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Hinfact Signs Agreement with Airbus to Offer Competency Based Training Assessment/Evidence Based Training Solutions

Aircraft manufacturer Airbus signed an agreement with Hinfact, a startup founded in 2018 specializing in creating and developing software solutions to enhance flight safety through two main focuses i.e. pilot training and in-flight operations, to offer airlines a complete Competency Based Training Assessment / Evidence-Based Training (CBTA/EBT) solution.

“With Airbus-specific data and configuration integrated into the Hinfact software, it ushers in a new era in data analytics for flight training,” said Vincent Rougès, Program Manager – Flight Operations & Training at Airbus.

Airbus is using Hinfact Training for its internal Instructor training and plans to extend the integration of this software to the entire CBTA training curriculum.

“Within the last few months, our solution Hinfact Training has been implemented in the main Airbus Training Centers around the globe,” said Thomas Bessiere, Co-founder & CEO at Hinfact. “As of today, we are taking the next step in our collaboration. We signed a major agreement that will allow us to also benefit from Airbus Training’s expertise in our industry. This agreement is a huge step forward and the conclusion of interesting and enriching discussions with the Airbus team.“.

“We believe at Hinfact that this cooperation will help the expansion of Evidence Based Training (EBT) in aviation training and help more and more airlines have a smooth transition towards it,” added Bessiere.

Source: Airbus and Hinfact
Photo Credit: Airbus and Hinfact

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