Air fleet Restructuring

Scenario

You are the manager of a medium size flight department. The company that you work for is financially stable but because of various corporate consolidations and financial considerations you are currently operating the fleet as listed below. Aircraft usage seems to be consistent and steady and you see no major changes in the coming years. The flight department has 20 employees, which consist of pilots, technicians and support staff. However, because you are a diligent manager you want to review the fleet and update your fleet plan and make any necessary recommendations (if any) to your executive in charge of the flight department. As we’ve discussed in class, safety and security are priority in a corporate flight department followed closely by customer service and efficiency. This paper should focus on the customer service aspect (i.e. what seems to be the preferred airplane) and efficiency (i.e. operating costs). When discussing efficiency, keep in mind that it is very rare to find a true corporate flight department that makes a profit. The flight department is meant to move those employees that make the company money so a flight department, on its own, will never have revenue.

Current Fleet Mix and Key Metrics
AircraftLease/OwnFlight Hours per yearMiles Flown per yearPaxAvg. SpeedCost/HRCost/NM
2000 King Air 350Own285718009250$870$3.45
2002 King Air 350Own285718009250$870$3.45
2008 Citation 650Lease253912908360$1540$4.26
2006 Falcon 50EXOwn4741816009380$1950$5.10
2006 Falcon 2000Lease4451710008380$1810$4.71

If you were the responsible party for this review, what are your thoughts given the above information?  Make any recommendations as to how the fleet should be structured. Please include what you think might be an appropriate course of action. Why?

Other Items to consider:

  • Aircraft performance
  • Aircraft operating expenses (Cost per hour and cost per NM just to name a couple)
  • Flight crew/maintenance technician training
  • Mission profile
  • Capital requirements
  • Costs to modify fleet
  • The 2018 Operating Cost Guide and the 2018 Purchase Planning Handbook (found in the “Resources” module) are going to provide you with the key metrics you need for your recommendation. The data in the “Current Fleet Mix” chart is a little dated. If the operating expenses vary between theresource documents and the above chart, use the listed documents as they provide the most current data.  
  • The “Budget Justification” found in Module 4 provides an excellent format for how your paper should be structured. The headings provide the areas that should be addressed.

You will write a 4 page summary and submit it via the dropbox. The document will be 4-pages (OF CONTENT), single spaced, with 1” margins. This should be a professional document with a cover page and graphics like you would use to present to a CEO.