Vertis Aviation has just completed its first round-the-world leisure trip, for a Middle Eastern client. The four-week-long journey was conducted with a BBJ featuring a bedroom with queen-size bed, two shower rooms, a six-place conference/dining room and two additional seating areas. The aircraft’s IFE system incorporates wi-fi and a range of TV, film and music content, displayed on HD screens. Inflight service was provided by two flight attendants and a two-Michelin-star chef.
The 11-stop journey began and ended in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, taking in Cairns, Hamilton Island and Sydney in Australia; Queenstown in New Zealand; Mendoza and Buenos Aires in Argentina; Dallas, Las Vegas and Los Angeles in the USA; and Paris in France.
The BBJ is the latest addition to the Vertis portfolio and was chosen for its 12-hour range, private bedroom and wi-fi connectivity. Vertis said the complex route required an immense amount of preparation and logistical planning, as well as a number of crew changes. Further levels of complexity were introduced by inclement weather and the client’s changing requirements.
“It was a challenging but successful trip, which we managed to execute to the customer’s satisfaction owing to our excellent relationship with Privajet, who manage and operate the aircraft,” said Jeffrey Emmenis, partner at Vertis Aviation. “Fortunately, Privajet is an efficient management company that understands the special requirements of our clients and they have the same boutique approach to maintaining the highest quality of service as Vertis, which is extremely important for us and our clients.”
Privajet operates the BBJ under management on its Maltese AOC. “From an operational and management point of view, the challenge with a trip such as this is to be able to control the costs, transparently, by anticipating the possible problems and finding the right solutions without compromising on the quality, safety and customer satisfaction,” said Jérôme Franier, commercial director at Privajet.
