Leading Edge Aviation Solutions forms alliance with Lloyd Aviation to sell business jets in Asia

Leading Edge Aviation Solutions joins forces with one of Asia’s top helicopter brokers to sell corporate jets in Asia.

Lloyd Aviation will now represent Leading Edge in Asia.

Leading Edge Aviation Solutions, a leading US based aircraft broker, has announced an alliance with Lloyd Aviation, a leading helicopter broker in Singapore.

Lloyd Aviation, the parent company of Lloyd Helicopters, will represent Leading Edge in Asia and have full access to all of the broker’s aircraft inventory. Leading Edge may also sell VIP and corporate helicopters for Lloyd in the US.

“Asia is clearly becoming a key market for business jets and we wanted to partner with someone in the region,” says Joe Carfagna Jnr, president of Leading Edge. “Lloyd Aviation has a fantastic reputation in Asia and we are delighted to be working with them.”

Lloyd Aviation has been in Asia since 1970, with the company starting out as a helicopter operator before switching to sales. Although it has an experienced representative in China, many of its helicopter sales have been to owners in fast growing markets like Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, India and Malaysia.

“The potential is clearly huge in China – and when it does open it will be a massive market – but we are also looking at opportunities across Asia as a whole,” says Christopher Lloyd, CEO of Lloyd Aviation. “The owners and operators of rotary aircraft in the region also tend to operate fixed wing aircraft so we had been looking at moving into this space for a while.”

Although Lloyd Aviation has worked with other aircraft brokers, Lloyd says that he was particularly keen to work with Leading Edge. “To sell aircraft well you really need 100 per cent control of the transaction and with Leading Edge we know we are working with professionals who truly understand the process and market.”

Carfagna and Lloyd both say that the two companies have similar cultures. This is not surprising as both Leading Edge and Lloyd have very similar histories – albeit in different aircraft markets.

Leading Edge was launched by Joe Carfagna Snr who worked at avionics company Bendix and Learjet before helping to launch Executive Air Fleet, one of the first aircraft management companies. He rose to chief operating officer and in 1982 he launched an aircraft sales division.

Six years later he left to launch his own brokerage which later became Leading Edge. He is now chairman and CEO of Leading Edge.

Patrick Lloyd, who founded Lloyd Aviation, also has a background in operating aircraft – although he focused on helicopters. In 1970 he launched Lloyd Helicopters, the first operator in Singapore, which serviced oil tankers moving through the Malacca Straits. During the 1970s and 1980s it grew its fleet to 25 helicopters based across Asia including supporting oil operations in tough environments like Papua New Guinea.

In 1986 – at a similar time to Carfagna Snr – the company also started brokering aircraft. By 1995 the company solely concentrated on selling helicopters. Patrick Lloyd is now based in London and still active in the business selling helicopters in Europe.

“As well as the reputation and regional expertise we were attracted to the fact that they have a similar focus on putting the customer first,” says Carfagna Jn r. “The fact that they are also a family business is also great.”