Villager publisher takes flight

Flexjet unveils new Legacy 450 aircraft

BY BOB SWEENEY
PUBLISHER

I have memories of wonderful airplane flight experiences, and some not so great. But flying is wonderful, and airplanes have changed our world and our lives. Close to home, right here in Arapahoe County, we have Centennial Airport, one of the nation’s finest general-aviation airports.

DTC founder George Wallace loved to fly, had a bi-plane double-wing stunt plane that he would pilot over DTC himself, doing rolls over his burgeoning empire of steel and glass buildings surrounded by expansive parks and green space.

George wanted to build his business park close to an airport, which he accomplished with the DTC. A visionary, he looked to the future and saw the boom of air travel for business and pleasure.

There were the airport wars, residents pitted against runway activities, controversy over scheduled passenger service and even the thought of DIA coming to Arapahoe County with the traffic, congestion and airplane noise. But peace and harmony have reigned for at least a decade and Centennial Airport has expanded and now is home to luxury jet planes, chartered flights and private jet planes that travel the world from Arapahoe County.

Business taxes roll in and planes fly out, everyone wins, and those who love the speed, efficiency and comfort of private jet travel revel in the progress of local flight convenience. There are beautiful private jet planes that can send Broncos executives like John Elway flying to a far-off destination. The service end of flights provides hundreds of jobs to local area residents in an expanding travel industry.

We have a number of airport services and firms operating at the airport including The Landing, one of the area’s finest restaurants.

A jet-scene invitation

It was in this vein that an invitation arrived at The Villager to view and learn about the new Legacy 450 business jet that is now flying out of Centennial Airport by Flexjet, one of the nation’s largest private jet-fleet operators out of Cleveland, Ohio.

The invitation was to meet executive Adam Tibbitts for a tour of the spanking new Brazilian Legacy 450 and to learn about Flexjet and fractional plane ownership for Denver customers.

I’m reminded of retired Denver Post Publisher Dean Singleton, who had his own jet plane to travel to his 160 publications around the United States. I flew with him on one occasion to Lincoln, Neb., where we were both inducted into Nebraska Press Association honorary Admirals Club for service to the newspaper industry. It was followed up by a Big Red football game in the Lincoln Stadium that was a sea of red. It was a quick trip, there and back, in a single day, and back home for dinner that same evening.

Getting there

The airport has a large footprint and facilities have expanded around the runways. To find Flexjet, I had to travel to the south entrance of the airport on new highways that skirt the southern portion of the property. There are a number of new firms operating on the southern runway area easily accessed off Broncos Parkway.

I was greeted by Adam at the front door of Flexjet, where passengers can easily park and walk directly into the passenger area. From there, pilots take luggage and passengers board the private jets parked nearby.

Adam led me to the Legacy 450 and we climbed onboard to a dazzling cabin of white leather seats, with flowers on the table and a plate of cookies.

There is seating on the plane for eight passengers and two pilots, a lavatory and small kitchen at the rear of the cabin. The Legacy has the latest instrumentation and digital flight controls powered by two Honeywell jet engines.  The plane has a cruising speed of 536 mph, a cruising altitude of 45,000 feet and range of 3,337 miles. The plane can land on shorter runways of 3,835 feet, enabling the plane to land at smaller airports.

Denver is dynamic

According to Flexjet, business jet travel in and out Denver is seeing a big uptick. They cite a New York Times article praising Denver as one of the “most dynamic economies in the country.” The article also cites Denver’s success in cultivating a now booming center for technological start-ups, corporate headquarters, commercial and residential developments, and now a major destination among wealthy business leaders and C-level executives from around the world.

Flexjet has seized this opportunity with the latest fleet of planes, including this first Legacy 450 from Embraer NYSE (ERJ).

Flexjet has become the first fractional fleet provider to take delivery of the Legacy 450, which the FAA certified in August 2015 with four more of these planes expected in the fleet by the end of this year.

Along with the Legacy 450, Flexjet 150 plane fleet includes the larger Legacy 500, smaller Learjet 75XI and mid-size Challenger 350.

Opportunity

Flexjet has many options and packages for fractional ownership. Last year, Centennial Airport managed more than 26,000 private jet departures and arrivals. IA has more than 140 nonstop destinations in comparison to more than 5,000 Flexjet destinations. According to Flexjet, Denver is ranked in the top 4 percent of the most affluent areas in the United States.

Fractional-ownership customers can buy a share in a specific aircraft and fly a fixed number of hours. For example, a one-eighth share would allow a client to fly up to 100 hours annually.

Flexjet is offering a newly launched premium that includes the same crew on the same plane for every flight. All of the fleet planes are less than 5 years old.For more information,  call 800-Flexjet or visit Flexjet.com.