AVCAIR – The Flying Family Redefining Aviation Excellence

Specialising in ‘aviation excellence’ since 2001, AVCAIR’s recent diversification strategy evolved the company into ‘the AVCAIR Group.’ The AVCAIR Group has since become a highly accredited, market-leading aviation organisation, offering end-to-end aviation solutions for numerous incorporated aviation businesses and private clientele.

“If you’re not growing, you’re dying.”

This was the Cooke brothers’ response when asked what it’s taken to maintain their consistent standard of excellence.

“The moment you stop growing, you’re no longer excellent. You’re great. And one of those formidable competitors will overtake you,” says Anthony Cooke, head of flight operations at AVCAIR.
“Excellence is not a goal you achieve, but a standard that requires you to constantly evolve and grow to maintain,” says Michael.

“I’ve been commended for my business’ achievements in recent years, but the fact is, it’s not just three years of growth — i’s 22 dedicated years of experience and professional development.”

Diversification: an industry disrupter

Comparable to many businesses in 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic had a stifling impact on AVCAIR, particularly as the business’ revenue streams were heavily reliant on international operations.
Finance and commercial manager Adam Hoey insighted the consequential the loss of international and domestic travel.

“To give an indication of the severity of this impact, in the 12 months leading up to COVID-19, 89% of AVCAIR flight hours were attained through international operations — the majority of which were aeromedical,” says Adam.

“In the 12 months to November 2021, before the relaxing of restrictions, international operations plummeted to represent approximately 10% of total flight hours.”
In response to the pandemic’s environmental restrictions, AVCAIR was prompted to begin intrastate operations and commercial contracts with significant government agencies and strategic partners, generating mutual benefits under the conditions.

Chief of operations, Phil Everitt, stated diversification has been the key to their success and stability, establishing AVCAIR’s widely integrated model as a survival strategy through the pandemic.

“Stifled by the pandemic, we had to more vigorously innovate and revolutionise the business to survive. Internalising our areas of expertise by diversifying into new divisions allowed us to take active control of our supply chain as well as drive major cost savings,” says Phil.

Their diversification strategy was to reduce sensitivity around one type of revenue stream, but the result was a business model unique to the Australian aviation industry.

“AVCAIR grew into what we are in spite of COVID-19, not because of it — a disrupter within the general aviation industry in Australia,” says Phil.

As Everitt explained, this vehement transformation into an industry disrupter was always the strategic goal. However, the challenging circumstances prompted necessary actions to be realised and brought forth sooner.

“Our distinctive integrated solutions business model has been recognised by competitors, operators, clients, and providers.”

Expanding from the mainstream business model of offering limited specialised services such as aircraft management or charter, business development and relationship manager Shaun Andrews

stated their new scope positions AVCAIR to be an all-inclusive option for its clientele.

These divisions of expertise now include:

• Private/Luxury charter
• OneOneAir Ambulance
• OneOneAir Cargo & FIFO
• Aircraft Procurement and Management
• RAMP and Fuel services

Aircraft FBO and Lounge services

“We are no longer reliant on one division of the business but have built a foundation of revenue streams through multiple divisions we now have expertise in,” says Shaun.

Thus, the company has streamlined the solutions services for single clients or offers a broader range appealing to the needs of multiple.

“Through all this work our revenue to 30 June 2022 grew by over 230% and is on track to double again in FY2023,” says Hoey.

“Our staffing base has almost doubled in the last 12 months to further support our expansion. “

Flying Family Roots

Aside from its wealth of experience and expertise, the company honours its even richer history with every decision.

AVCAIR’S aviation legacy started with Michael and Anthony’s great grandfather, Lionel Cooke and his 11th licence in Australia — a legacy that carried through generations of pilots to follow.

But a lesser-known story is that his father, William Cooke, was a renowned astronomer, famous for developing methodologies in astronomical observations and star cataloguing, making Perth Observatory one of the best-equipped in Australia for the photographic mapping of stars. His work was acclaimed internationally.

“From a time before the Wright brothers, this was as close as he could get to the sky. That’s the most fascinating, beautiful part; the Cooke family has always had this desire to be in the sky deeply ingrained in us,” says Michael.

“There’s a secret ingredient in us, lying in our lineage — there must be. For us all to be drawn to this path through generations. When I think of how far we’ve come and what we’re on the edge of achieving … yeah, I can hardly believe it,” says Anthony.

The AVCAIR Family

AVCAIR prides itself on its values of certainty, reliability, and exclusivity — values designed around the original flying family’s integrity, aviation passion, and the standard of excellence their own family deserves.

The Cooke brothers explained that it was during their last significant period of growth in 2016 that brought to light the shortfalls between their many strengths and began filling these gaps with the right people.

“Hire people better than you is what I learnt. It’s unrealistic to be excellent at everything, so understand your weaknesses,” says Michael.

“Capitalise on our strengths, and delegate our weaknesses. That ensures every role is being carried out with excellence.”

Andrews explained that although AVCAIR has grown far beyond a family business, the legacy of the Flying Family applies every day in the company culture — from the treatment of colleagues to partners and clients.

“We are flying families and we are treating them as though they are family, because you only want to deliver the best for your mum or sister and that comes down to the safety aspect as well,” says Shaun.

The ‘Flying Family’ legacy is one these AVCAIR leaders have expressed is a credence they strive to instil echoes of in every department regardless of their growth to come.

“The integral part is that these values are held and translated without compromise throughout our team leaders, so in years to come clients will feel the passion and integrity in its roots, built from our legacy,” says Anthony.

“The flying family concept is so important to me, and this extends beyond internal relationships through to partnerships and clientele, because it’s the people that make AVCAIR what it is,” says Michael.

“Our people have been imperative to our growth and success. This is a business structure that thrives on the quality of our people, and credit to the family legacy it came from,” says Michael.
Shaun stated these partnerships and associated contracts underpinned the survival strategy and growth since. Thus, the company values their relationships greatly and value growing with people.
Anthony added, “Our people are not part of our brand, they are our brand. They do not meet a standard, they set and deliver that standard. And if our people were not excellent, AVCAIR wouldn’t be.”

“The ‘Certainty’ is in our qualifications. ‘Reliability’ is in our qualities. It’s the two combined with that extra x value, call it passion, dedication, to consistently raise the standard that creates ‘Excellence’,” says Phil.

Soaring Ahead

Recently, an impressive 21 years since the founding of AVCAIR, the team launched its new branch OneOneAir, named in honour of Lionel Cookes’ 11th licence. Operated by AVCAIR, OneOneAir delivers a conglomerate of aviation solutions under its’ three divisions:

• OneOneAir Ambulance
• OneOneAir Cargo
• OneOneAir FIFO

Governed by the same code of ethics and exceptional standards, OneOneAir delivers against AVCAIR’s value proposition and promise of aviation excellence.

The AVCAIR board expressed no plans to slow its expansion, soon to launch its CAR 30, and officially establishing their maintenance division in the coming year as well as discussions of launching an internal aviation school, ‘AVCAIR Academy’.

“What we have now is a self-sufficient widely integrated model. It’s time to replicate that model across the domestic market and internationally to accommodate for all future diversification streams,” says Phil.

Michael stated his strategic goal in five years is to solidify AVCAIR’s end-to-end function of full suit and service on a global scale.

“From an aeromedical view, you know you can rely on AVCAIR no matter where in the world you are,” says Michael.

“I am driven by the fact that what we do at AVCAIR empowers our passion for aviation to aid in saving lives, to deliver pleasure, and to help people,” says Michael.

The CEO noted the age-old principle that they truly are only as good as their people.

“We are unique. We are innovators. We raise the bar of excellence and we are ready to enter our next phase of growth.”

So, what is Aviation Excellence?

Aviation with Certainty And Impeccable Reliability.