Aviation News Item: 01036

20th Aug 2009

Source: fly-corporate.com

"We are very confident of our business model," CEO of Jet Republic Jonathan Breeze told FlyCorporate in May when the company announced plans to expand into Belgium. It seems those plans will not come to fruition with reports today that the company has ceased trading and Breeze's announcement to employees that Jet Republic is "technically insolvent".

Jet Republic came to public attention in June 2008 when it announced an order for 110 Learjet 60 XR aircraft. Valued at $1.5 billion, it was the largest Learjet order ever. Rumours of Jet Republic's demise seemed to be confirmed when Bombardier announced today that it had cancelled the purchase agreement for all 25 firm and 85 conditional Learjet 60 XR orders.

The company has been locked in a battle with rival NetJets with allegations that Jet Republic had tried to poach staff from its rival. A court order in June 2008 prevented Jet Republic from approaching former and current NetJets personnel, despite NetJets shedding a number of staff recently. In an interview with the Financial Times, Breeze claimed that the injunction was preventing his company from hiring some of the five to ten new people it needed each month.

The news of Jet Republic's demise has not disappointed everyone. Competitor Blink issued a cheekily worded media release announcing that their "prudent business plan" means they are still in business.

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