Planet 9 is poised for stellar charter growth

As the on-demand charter and management company turns three, Planet 9 has set its sights on a meteoric return in 2021 with a fleet of 20 aircraft. Words: Yuvan Kumar

PLANET 9’s TWO CO-FOUNDERS Left: Matt Walter, director of business development and James Seagrim, director of operations. The company was launched in 2018 to build a floating fleet of ultra-long-range aircraft.

Planet 9 is poised for stellar charter growth

As the on-demand charter and management company turns three, Planet 9 has set its sights on a meteoric return in 2021 with a fleet of 20 aircraft. Words: Yuvan Kumar

PLANET 9’s TWO CO-FOUNDERS Left: Matt Walter, director of business development and James Seagrim, director of operations. The company was launched in 2018 to build a floating fleet of ultra-long-range aircraft.

IT IS SURPRISINGLY rare to find a company that doesn’t make some reference to jets, aviation or aircraft in its name. On-demand charter and management company Planet 9 is one of the exceptions. The hypothetical planet it is named after is rumoured to orbit at the edge of our solar system. The company was set up in 2018 by Matt Walter and James Seagrim in Van Nuys, with a clear goal to build a floating fleet of ultra-long-range aircraft.

Now, upon completion of three years in business this June, their company has a fleet of 17 aircraft – 15 managed and two owned – ranging from Dassault Falcon 7Xs to Gulfstream GVs, a loyal team of ‘Niners’ and a boom in international charter just around the corner.

“It's a combination of owned, managed and leased aircraft that operate around the world,” Matt Walter tells Corporate Jet Investor (CJI).

Walter and Seagrim have known each other for a long time. They previously ran Advanced Air Management, which specialised in managing long-range business jets and was acquired by Singapore-based Zetta Jet in 2016. When the Zetta management team fell out, the pair decided to launch Planet 9. Several of the Advanced Air Management team came onboard the new company.

Although they have had to deal with a global pandemic in its first three years, the co-founders are confident pre-pandemic flight demand is now closer than ever. “Whilst we're not back to pre-pandemic levels, we're within striking distance – 10 to 15% – of the pre-pandemic utilisation,” according to Walter. He says March 2020 was the busiest month in the history of the company.

Walter and Seagrim had an existing relationship with the Van Nuys Flight Standards Office, which helped them set up an air operator’s certificate (AOC) in just six months, compared with the usual two years. “The support of the FAA and the local vendors, friends and family, helped accelerate the process and we started in 2018 with one Dassault Falcon 7X,” Seagrim tells CJI.

Van Nuys is – alongside Farnborough Airport – the Mecca for business aviation in the world, according to Seagrim, which makes it an excellent place for aircraft services and therefore their business.

Seagrim says: “We define ourselves by delivering our missions. Ad hoc charter is one of the hardest things to do when someone calls you up and says, we want to go to South Africa tomorrow. Many operators will say you just can't do that. But there's always a way to do these trips legally and within Federal Aviation Regulations [FARs]. We know our rules and regulations and we know how to move airplanes around the world.”

The company’s operations department is based in Lisbon, Portugal, while its customer service team is based in Houston, Texas. However, its directors of sales and maintenance operate from London, New York and Van Nuys. Walter says: “Our line of sight is Van Nuys, Teterboro, London.”

Planet 9 does all its aircraft dispatch, handling, and flight operations in-house. This made a huge difference during the pandemic, according to Walter. “When the rules were changing – and it was so fluid – having your own team and not having to rely on third parties to operate these aircraft made all the difference in the world.”

“The international jet charter market is going to go crazy.”

Personal flights made up 85% of trips booked through Planet 9 during the pandemic. Walter says: "We think once you can just freely operate the international jet charter market is going to go crazy."

Overall, 75-80% of the trips Planet 9 does are international flights, unlike many of its competitors based at Van Nuys. It earns its bread and butter through transatlantic flights – from western Europe to either the east or west coast of the US. While other routes – especially as the summer approaches – can include trips to the Caribbean, Singapore and South Africa.

Planet 9’s fleet is still growing, now operating a total of 17 aircraft. It is aiming to end 2021 with 20 aircraft under management, the co-founders said. Of these, it has added two Bombardier Global Express, a Dassault Falcon 7X and a Gulfstream GIV. A Bombardier Global 6000 and one more Gulfstream aircraft will be next to join the fleet. “We firmly believe we are entering the roaring ’20s,” says Seagrim.

The operator uses spend management company, MySky, to help monitor expenditure and proactively uses its insights to create greater efficiency for its business. Chris Marich, co-founder, MySky, tells CJI that Planet 9’s financial efficiency is above market average and it had “great efficiency on its procurement, especially when travelling to Europe which is generally out of the ‘comfort zone’ for American operators”.

Marich described the company’s ability to work in both the US and Europe as ambidextrous. Some of Planet 9’s aircraft fly over 70 hours a month for charter, he says. “It takes advantage of peaks in the US and the EU markets. Summer is slow in the US, but busy in Europe and so the planes stay active.”

Planet 9’s operations team is highly skilled at procuring airport and fuel services, according to Seagrim. “This means our uplift costs are substantially lower than many operators. We also do all our operations in-house, so our cost of operating a flight from Los Angeles to London on the cost side is automatically 15% lower on administrative costs.”

Marich says the company’s fuel procurement helped save owners money. “Its fuel procurement was superior to that of operators much larger than it – coming in between 10-20%, at times, below the market transaction average – which is great for owners.”

Small to midsize manage-ment companies are doing a fantastic job, says Marich, but not getting the recognition for it. “Managed clients are unaware of the savings they are getting and the effects it has downstream on their direct operating costs, charter margins and ultimately their total cost of ownership.”

FALCON 7X INTERIOR Planet 9 launched in 2018 with one Dassault Falcon 7X and has now added five more of the type to its fleet. The aircraft’s cabin is organised into three separate lounges, catering for between 12 to 16 clients. Planet 9 chose the Falcon 7X due to the aircraft’s efficiency, low atmospheric impact and OEM support, according to the company.

Dassault Falcon 7X and Sustainable Aviation Fuel

Planet 9 started with one Dassault Falcon 7X and has now got six in its fleet. The aircraft’s efficiencies, low atmospheric impact and OEM support were a major part of this decision.

Seagrim says: "Working with Falcon is an absolute pleasure. They've been so supportive of us during the hard times this year, the times where we needed their support. Nine out of 10 times they come back with full support.”

Paul Floreck, senior vice president Sales, US and Canada, Dassault Falcon Jet tells CJI: “Matt, James and their team are terrific people and as Falcon operators, they are very important to us. Planet 9 brings to their charter customers exposure to the Falcon 7X that they might not otherwise have and the feedback they receive and share with us is consistently positive. It is a great partnership and we are pleased that their business is going so well.”

Planet 9 is also doing its bit to address the pressing issue of sustainability. It increasingly offers Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) to clients. “This is something we will be promoting more and we have a carbon offset programme with Terrapass,” says Seagrim.

Walter feels customers flying with SAF are still the exception, not the rule. “There are a few blue chip, Fortune 100-type customers that are more concerned with their carbon footprint than they are the price of the charter,” he says.

However, he is hoping there is a trickledown effect in the coming years.

By the five-year mark, Walter says Planet 9 will continue to keep delivering the missions it has done in its first three years. “We believe that we are a premium operator of these ultra-long-range aircraft. And we’re going to go for the new aircraft – whether it is the Falcon 8X, 10X or the Bombardier Global 7500 – that were built to globetrot.”

“We believe that the owners of this next generation of aircraft will bring them to Planet 9 because of our track record operating the aircraft around the globe," adds Walter.

And with this track record, Walter and Seagrim’s wealth of experience and the Niners to back them, Planet 9 is ready to take on the boom in international charter.

SUPERIOR SERVICE Here to serve. Planet 9 prizes top quality service from skilled staff. Matt Walter explained: “The equipment is certainly important but the people and the service are much more important.”

GROWING THE FLEET Planet 9 continues to significantly expand its fleet this year. Now numbering 17 aircraft, the company has already added two Bombardier Global Express business jets, a Dassault Falcon 7X and a Gulfstream GIV so far this year. The business expects to end 2021 with a fleet of 20 aircraft.

Yuvan Kumar, Reporter, Corporate Jet Investor

Yuvan Kumar, Reporter, Corporate Jet Investor