AVWest

“Five years ago I was brought on board to bring the company out of a private entity into a full commercial, corporate operation and that’s basically been my job since then,” AVWest general manager Mick Rowbottom told Australian Aviation.

Since then the company has grown exponentially, and currently operates a fleet of four business jets, one helicopter and one amphibian. These are operated on behalf of aircraft owners, where it provides aircraft operating and management services, private charters, aircraft acquisition consulting and a large engineering operation, essentially offering end-to-end service to its list of clients.

“We are a one-stop shop to all our customers. Everything they ever need for their aircraft – support, service, maintenance, flying operations – everything is internal within AVWest,” said Rowbottom.

As such, AVWest is now the premier business aviation operator in WA, and accordingly caters for the aviation needs of a number of different clients, many of whom have built up long term relationships with the organisation.

“There are a lot of high net worth individuals that operate out of Western Australia that have come onboard and utilise our services very regularly,” said Rowbottom. “Given the international levels of the companies that are operating in the North West in the resources sector, and we basically service the directors of the board for those large organisations and we fly them around when they’re in WA visiting mine sites and the like.”

“We are the only one in Perth that has this level of capability and we would be quite comparable to any organisation in the Southeast Asian region and Australia,” said Rowbottom.

In attracting and retaining those clients, AVWest has put a deliberate focus on building long-term relationships and providing a high quality of service tailored to that individual client.

“We know when a certain person rings and wants to go from point A to point B, immediately we know the basics that we have to have on the aeroplane for them. That’s all part of getting to know your clients,” said Rowbottom.

Often that comes down to the small touches. “We provide what they want. With our regulars we know what sort of beverage they would like on board. We know that they want a fruit platter on board or they want a cheese platter on board,” he said, by way of example.

To support this wide and varied work, the company operates a mixed fleet of fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. Presently, this includes one Gulfstream GIV-SP, a Bombardier Challenger 604, a Global Express XRS, one Global 5000 and a Hawker 800XP. In addition it operates two helicopters, an AgustaWestland A109 Grand and a Eurocopter EC-145, and a Cessna Caravan amphibian.

“All the aircraft here are operated under our AOC so they are available for charter, and if they’re not being utilised by the owners we try to sell charters into those machines,” said Rowbottom.

The fleet is also being added to, with Rowbottom explaining that at least two more aircraft are due by the end of 2010. “We also currently have another Challenger 604 that is being sourced in America to bring on board before the end of the year, and we have just purchased a second Global XRS which is being refitted in Indianapolis,” he said.

The focus on larger, longer ranging business jets is necessary given the isolation of Perth and the flexibility that its clients require. Additionally, a number of its clients are involved in offshore business, regularly requiring them to fly to a range of destinations around the world.

“What we need is that range within those aircraft to get our clients to their destination with minimal stoppage. So with the larger aircraft like the XRSs which can carry three crew, we can rotate the crew and we only have a fuelling stop on some of the longer flights,” said Rowbottom.

“It’s all about improving the service, getting them there in the comfort and style they want to get there in with minimal fuss,” he added.
In addition to its investment in aircraft, the company has invested heavily in its Perth base, and built major facilities to cater for the aircraft and their clients at the Perth Jet Centre, which incorporates its operations base, a fixed base operations (FBO) facility and its state of the art engineering facilities.

“We have a full FBO facility which caters predominately now for our internal and managed clients only. There are some exceptions, we do some external work on a case-by-case basis, so it’s really for our own clients,” explained Rowbottom.

The Jet Centre has been established to meet the needs of clients flying both internationally and domestically. When departing, clients are able to securely park their vehicles on-site, and have access to a luxurious lounge, with the ability to use business facilities or even to take a shower prior to boarding the aircraft. Similarly, for arrivals, the company organises customs, quarantine and immigration clearance, while the ground operations team can ensure that baggage is promptly unloaded and placed straight into the clients’ waiting vehicle.

The Jet Centre also has the ability to be fully locked down should the customer request it to allow for a discreet arrival or departure. It can utilise the hangar to provide a more private arrival, with passengers able to deplane inside the hangar with its doors closed, allowing passengers to be transported into waiting vehicles and taken out through a side entrance. In some cases, this has allowed high profile pop stars and businessmen to avoid media scrutiny on arrival.

This approach to privacy is a major strength of AVWest’s, and one that it instils in all of its employees. “It’s never advertised who’s through the facility and when they’re through,” said Rowbottom. “People who work here are very, very clear on not making approaches to the clients. We’re just all about delivering the ultimate in business aviation travel for these people and we tailor our operational requirements to exactly what their needs are.”

AVWest also has facilities at the Rous Head Heliport near Fremantle at and Broome Airport in WA’s north.

Adjacent to the passenger terminal at the Jet Centre is AVWest’s large hanger, from where it conducts its engineering services. These are comprehensive, with the company able to conduct the majority of its maintenance in-house, with the exception of some of the larger work, such as cabin refits and aircraft repainting. It also has a 24/7 engineering operation which can monitor and assist with any maintenance issues on any of its aircraft around the world.

“The way that we’ve structured our operations is that we’ve got dedicated crew members for the various machines. Our engineering staff are fully trained on all machines and a lot of them are cross-trained on various types,” said Rowbottom.

“Our tooling, ground support equipment and documentation is all state of the art product. We don’t do anything in half measures.”
The focus on in-house maintenance is somewhat unique at a time when outsourcing has become a popular form of business. But for AVWest, the level of its clientele means that keeping everything in-house allows it to have firm control over all aspects of its client’s safety while they are on board its aircraft.

“We are responsible for the safety and delivery of high net worth individuals to all parts of the globe, and that’s paramount to the way that AVWest operates,” said Rowbottom.

In accordance with that responsibility, the company is routinely subject to audits of its maintenance, safety and flying operations systems from many of its clients.

As well as its regular customers and managed aircraft clients, AVWest also has an active involvement in the charter market, and has conducted a number of entertainment industry charters. “We do a lot of pop star tours and things like that around the country. When they kick off in Perth we are in the running to meet their transportation needs around the country and into New Zealand and back into Southeast Asia,” said Rowbottom.

Although the company has managed to grow strongly since 2005, its charter business was affected by the global financial crisis. Nevertheless, the impact of this was tempered by a continued strong utilisation by some of its main clients.

“We still have extensive owners’ use of their machines for their business needs, and given we had a very good private client list that we service regularly, that was not impacted,” said Rowbottom. “From the ad hoc charter market, that did dip significantly during the global financial crisis. However, we see the amount of enquiry has picked up but it’s not comparable to the levels of enquiries we were getting in 2007 and 2008.”

“I would say now it is at about 70 per cent of where it was prior to the GFC and it is notably increasing,” he added.

Another area where AVWest has been operating in is conducting work on behalf of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, where it has used its jets to provide support for its search and rescue operations. Given the long range capability of aircraft such as the Global Express XRS, AVWest has been called upon to assist in locating missing sailors where AMSA’s own Dornier 328 aircraft do not have the range to reach them. While this has only been a small part of AVWest’s operations, it has provided some unique flying experiences for its pilots.

As for the future of the company, a significant growth in its fleet over the next few years will ensure that it can meet the demand of its customers. As well as the aircraft due in by the end of 2011, AVWest earlier this year ordered four new Global Express XRSs (including two which will be equipped with the Global Vision avionics suite), while it also has a Gulsftream G650 on order. It is also planning to take delivery of Australia’s first Viking Air Series 400 Twin Otter during the next year, which will be equipped with floats for amphibious operations.

“We’re looking forward to obviously further expansion, and these are long term orders that are being generated out of necessity to grow the business,” said Rowbottom. “When all those machines come on board with us, we will be the largest corporate operator in the Australasian region by far.”

As it grows, the company will continue be a discerning employer for the few new positions as they come up, something that it has been doing now for five years. “We commenced this role of bringing it into what it is now, the philosophy was to be extremely choosy on who we employed from an engineering, pilot and cabin attendant perspective, and with the way our selection goes we have a near zero turnover of staff,” said Rowbottom.

With the growth in business aviation in WA expected to continue as the economy benefits from a second resources boom, so too has the competition in the market. At Perth, Maxem Aviation and Revesco Aviation also operate some similar equipment, while majors, such as Hawker Pacific and Execujet are also expected to increase their presence in Perth due to the strong local economy.

“When all those machines come onboard with us, we will be the largest corporate operator in the Australasian region by far.”

But Rowbottom says that as far as his company and staff concerned, the competition is not so much a threat as a challenge for them to continue to provide the highest levels of service to its customers. “I have no doubt that there will be other organisations who will set up in Perth, and that is good because that means that AVWest has to really keep at the top of its game and we can’t let our guard down.”

Despite its growth, Rowbottom says that there are no plans to expand the company away from its Perth base, and that its focus remains firmly on serving the Perth market and providing the best service to its growing client list.

“There are a lot of high net worth individuals who reside in Western Australia and also many who visit Western Australia and require the level of service that we offer,” said Rowbottom. “That is, second to none.”