Excellent Air has added three aircraft to its charter fleet, taking the operator to 14 jets and adding capacity on the routes that carry most of Europe’s private traffic. The new arrivals are two Cessna Citation CJ4s and one Citation CJ2+, all from the single aircraft family the company has built its whole operation around.
Many operators buy across several manufacturers and aircraft categories. This business has stayed with the Cessna Citation line for more than a decade, and the latest purchases strengthen that choice. Three jets added to an existing eleven makes a real difference to what the company can offer on any given day, especially through the busy summer weeks when availability across Europe runs tight.
For clients, the gain is choice. A bigger fleet built on one aircraft type means more slots, shorter positioning times and a wider spread of cabin sizes to pick from, without the extra complexity that usually comes with growth.
Three jets, one family
The two Citation CJ4s bring the largest cabins in the line-up, carrying up to nine passengers with a range of around 1,900 nautical miles. The CJ2+ is the sharp choice at the lighter end, taking up to six passengers roughly 1,200 nautical miles. The CJ3 covers the middle beautifully, with room for up to seven and a range of about 1,600 nautical miles. These figures are a guide for normal planning and will vary with passenger load, weather, airport performance and routing.
Sticking to one family pays off in ways that build up year after year. Pilots train on a common type, maintenance follows one set of procedures and spare parts are shared across the whole fleet. Aircraft stay ready to fly, and the delays that mixed-fleet operators accept as a cost of business are designed out at source. Every engineer and every crew member knows every aircraft in the hangar.
Right jet, right trip
A broader fleet lets the operator size the aircraft to the journey. A short hop such as London to Paris suits a Citation CJ2 or CJ2+, where the extra range of a bigger jet adds cost without adding much else. Longer legs to southern Spain, Portugal or Morocco call for the CJ4, and the two new arrivals give the company more capacity on exactly these routes.
Matching the aircraft to the trip keeps operating costs down and gives each client the right answer for the journey in front of them. Single-type operators face a harder call, flying something either bigger than the trip needs or short on range. Four categories within one family removes that trade-off.
Excellent Air holds a permanent UK Block Permit, which allows flights to and from the United Kingdom without asking for individual approvals each time after Brexit. The permit takes out an admin step that still slows British itineraries for operators without the same authorisation. On short-notice bookings, where hours count, it really makes a difference.
The company also carries pets through all major UK airports and a wide range of regional airfields. Families relocating, weekending or moving between homes gain flexibility that scheduled airlines rarely offer, and the permission reaches well past the main London gateways.
Fleet on the move
The business is headquartered in Bavaria, but its aircraft are not tied to fixed home bases. The fleet is placed where demand sits, spread across the main European business aviation markets of London, Paris, Geneva, Milan and Nice, with extra weight on Ibiza and Palma through the summer.
This floating base approach cuts empty repositioning flights, improves availability and keeps pricing sharp across Europe. A jet already sitting in Nice can start a Riviera charter without first flying down from Germany, and the saving shows up in both the price and the departure time. Three more aircraft give the company more pieces to move around the board.
The client base runs from entrepreneurs and corporate bookings to families flying for leisure. Through the year the operator also flies a good number of professional athletes, particularly from football and Formula 1, both during the season and between competitions. Sporting calendars demand exact timing, total discretion and the ability to move at short notice, and this fleet handles all three with room to spare.
Ten years of running one aircraft family has produced a method that works: stay with the Cessna Citation line, cut ferry flying through smart positioning, standardise training, maintenance and buying, and carry far less operational complexity than mixed-fleet rivals. The aim stays the same on every trip, whatever the aircraft or destination. A reliable operation, flexibility and a discreet service. Fourteen aircraft now sit behind that promise, and both charter clients and aircraft owners are the better for it.