George Mattson delivering the fleet transition announcement at NBAA-BACE.
LAS VEGAS—Wheels Up, an Atlanta-based charter company, detailed its plan to trasnsition its entire fleet to Embraer Phenom 300/300E and Bombardier Challenger 300/350-series aircraft.
The transition is partially fueled by its acquisition of GrandView Aviation’s entire fleet of 17 Phenom 300 and 300E aircraft at a purchase price of $105 million. Additionally, the charter will assume GrandView’s existing customer program and retain its pilots. According to the charter, GrandView will operate the Phenom aircraft under Wheels Up’s purview until they are transitioned to Wheels Up’s FAA operating certificate.
As for the charter’s super-midsize fleet, Wheels Up will “opportunistically” replace its fleet of Cessna Citation X aircraft with pre-owned Challenger 300 and 350 aircraft through outright purchases and long-term leases. All 13 of its currently owned Citation X aircraft will be sold to an unrelated third party.
According to Wheels Up CEO George Mattson, the charter will continue operating its fleet of King Air aircraft within its existing programmatic service area.
“Our fleet modernization plan enables us to realize the full potential of our go-to-market strategy, introducing two of the most popular private jet aircraft available in the market today in a flexible, on-demand programmatic offering versus the fractional alternatives that comprise most of the install bases for these aircraft types,” Mattson said.
Customers can expect to see the newly acquired aircraft in 2025, with an expected complete transition within the next three years. According to Mattson, the modernization will lower the average aircraft age of its fleet by nearly 10 years.
In addition to the transition, Wheels Up will outfit its modernized fleet with standardized livery and interiors. But the biggest change comes with the charter’s partnership with Gogo Business Aviation to provide its new fleet with Gogo Galileo HDX satellite-based Wi-Fi. The inflight connectivity solution is expected to be certified by mid-2025, with availability beginning subsequently.
The fleet modernization is made possible through a commitment letter with Bank of America for a five-year senior secured revolving credit facility of up to $332 million, with credit support from Delta Air Lines.
“In the year since we’ve invested in Wheels Up, their operational performance, financial progress and the successful revamp of their customer offering have validated our decision to embark on this one-of-a-kind strategic partnership,” said Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian. “Underpinned by those key improvements and further fueled by the forthcoming execution of this modernized fleet strategy, we feel more confident than ever that Wheels Up is on the right track to be a global leader in private aviation, as we work together to build an unrivaled partnership spanning across commercial and private travel.”
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