ExecuJet responds to rising private flights with new KL facility
ExecuJet, a key player in the aviation industry, launched its latest facility in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday, to address the rising demand for private jets across Asia-Pacific.
Despite concerns over greenhouse gas emissions linked to aviation, top executives argue the necessity of private jets, while the Malaysian transport minister hopes there is an influx of investment in the aviation business.
ExecuJet, headquartered at Lanseria International Airport in South Africa, is an international business aviation company with facilities in 14 locations.
It opened its maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility in Kuala Lumpur’s Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport or Subang Airport on Thursday after spending 15 years testing the market.
Spanning an impressive 13,000-plus square metres, this state-of-the-art facility can accommodate 15 jets and is expected to cater to high-flying executives not just in Malaysia, but also in neighbouring countries like Thailand.
Positioning Malaysia as an aviation hub in the region, Transport Minister Anthony Loke underscored his role in bringing ExecuJet MRO services to the country.
“We hope for more aviation investments to Malaysia, especially at Subang Airport … We have an ambitious plan to turn this entire area into a hub for business jets, not just MRO services. As for sustainability concerns, I’m sure these facilities have taken this into consideration,” Loke said.
Ivan Lim, ExecuJet’s regional vice president, explained that Asia-Pacific was the fastest-growing market for business jets, and the third largest after North America and Europe.
“Business jet usage is not driven by the fact that there is an MRO centre, but by the needs of the users. Southeast Asia has so many islands and a lot of small airports. Sometimes commercial airlines just cannot reach them efficiently,” he said.
A paper on jet-setting trends during Covid and environmental implications published by the Transport Research Interdisciplinary Perspectives, shows that the use of private jets rose five-fold since the pandemic, increasing emissions by 23% between October 2019 and October 2021.
Jean Kayanakis, a senior vice president at Dassault Aviation, a designer and manufacturer of business and military aircraft, said “we have to do everything possible to try and be carbon neutral”.
Graeme Duckworth, president of ExecuJet’s MRO Services, however, believes there is a very small percentage of people using private jets compared to people using commercial airlines, which are bigger emitters.
While the MRO services provider has little control over the use of sustainable aviation fuel, ExecuJet has some eco-friendly features such as a rainwater harvesting system, solar panels and use of LED lights, he said.
Duckworth added that he believes the facility’s eco-conscious design will serve as a magnet for multinational corporations, reinforcing ExecuJet’s commitment to becoming a top MRO service provider in Asia.
