CJI magazine features NetJets, Gulfstream’s Cessna Citation Ascend and more
An exclusive interview with NetJets president Patrick Gallagher, our First Look probe of Textron’s new Citation Ascend and an investigation into how to beat the autumn maintenance bottleneck all feature in the latest edition of CJI’s magazine.
During a wide-ranging interview, Gallagher explained how he likes to sign cards to mark the significant anniversaries of long-standing clients. It looks like he could be signing a lot more card in future, as the fractional goes from strength to strength.
NetJets now has an active fleet of more than 1,000 aircraft across it’s three operating companies – more than triple the size of its nearest rival Flexjet.
Business aviation will continue to see “a flight to quality” in response to continuing economic uncertainty in the form of trade disputes and geopolitical strife.
Flight data consultancy WINGX Advance says NetJets enjoys (for now) an unassailable lead in the North American fractional market. “NetJets will be king of the fractional hill for the foreseeable future,” Richard Koe, MD of WINGX told us. “No other single operator gets close to NetJets’s double-digit share of all business jet flight activity globally.” NetJets Aviation: The future of fractional.
Cessna Citation Ascend
From the industry’s leading fractional operator to a new jet in the industry. Our First Look feature starred the Cessna Citation Ascend, which carries a price tag of $16.7m.
Jimmy Beeson, vice president of Product Design, Textron Aviation told CJI: “Once the aircraft is certified later this year, more specific range comparisons will be available; however, we expect a four-passenger range of 1,900nm at a high-speed cruise power with an estimated max range of 2,100nm.” First Look: Cessna Citation Ascend.
Otto Aviation’s Phantom 3500
An aircraft of another kind featured in our Upfront section, as we profiled Otto Aviation’s Phantom 3500 aircraft. This novel windowless design features a novel laminar flow, which helps to deliver a 50% reduction in operating costs, according to the manufacturer.
Claiming a maximum range of 3,200nm and cruise speed of up to Mach 0.8 will be powered by two Willliams FJ44 engines. With an estimated price of about $19.5m, the Phantom 3500 is slated to take flight in 2027, with FAA Part 23 certification and entry into service targeted for 2030. Flexjet was so impressed it recently placed a firm order for 300 aircraft with options for more. Otto Aerospace: The Phantom 3500.
Autumn bottleneck
Keeping business aircraft flying was theme of our maintenance feature on how to beat the autumn bottlemeck. Although maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) slots are growing harder to find, there are remedies, according to five leading maintenance providers profiled in this article.
Planning and booking maintenance projects early – from six months to a full year in advance – remains the most effective tool. Scheduling major inspections in summer or early autumn, pre-buying long-lead parts and aligning downtime with periods of lower utilisation can also help. Maintenance: Beat the Q4 bottleneck.
Aviation financiers
The market insights of leading business aviation financiers were also featured In this issue. Younger buyers, new entrants and plenty of opportunities was the consensus of opinion from the experts we consulted.
Contributing views include business leaders from Jetcraft, Global Jet Capital, JetLoan Capital, Close Brothers, JP Morgan Private Bank, 1st Source Bank, UBS and First American. Financing flight: Top financiers share insights.
Out of office
A business aircraft of a previous era starred in the latest edition of our series Out of Office, which charts how the private passions of business aviation leaders pay off in their working lives. We strap into the right-hand seat of Lou Seno’s Beechcraft Bonanza for his 50th consecutive visit to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Industry veteran Seno, executive director, International Aircraft Dealer’s Association, first visited the event with his father in 1956 (the year President Eisenhower was re-elected). (We also include an account of Shawn Dinning’s first flight into Oshkosh, piloting his own Cirrus SR-22. The senior partner, Dallas Jet International, joined 48 aircraft of the same time as part of the Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association formation. Out of office: Lou Seno’s 50 visits to Oshkosh.
LightHawk
We stay with light aircraft for our profile of the aviation charity LightHawk. The organisation recruits volunteer pilots and their aircraft to fly conservation missions throughout North America. Their passengers include: red wolves, bobwhite quail and black-footed ferrets.
After flying a mission with a National Geographic photographer who supplied the magazine’s front cover, one Cessna 180 pilot remarked: “I looked at that picture and I realised that there were 10m people looking out of the door of my airplane.” Wildlife conservation: Taking off with LightHawk.
Meanwhile, read more content from the current issue below. And if you think there’s a topic we should cover in our next edition to be published at our CJI London conference in early February 2026, please let us know.
Other features in CJI H1 2025
flyExclusive: The last mile on floats – How a new Cessna Caravan service is easing clients’ travel.
Saudi Arabia: The booming bizjet market – Business aviation in the Kingdom is hotting up.
SAF solutions: Signature & 4AIR – Senior executives are driving demand for SAF.
Jet Data: At a glance – Key details of the latest business jets.
Report: CJI Malta 2025 – News and views from our inaugural conference on the island.
Report: SAF Investor London 2025 – Bright SAF prospects energised our conference.
Report: CJI Dubai 2025 – UAE is proving a powerhouse of growth for business aviation.
CJI Dealmakers Club – We capture the essence of event in photographs.
