The bar continues to get higher and higher for private aviation.
Not only are brands competing for customers by making aircraft swifter and swisher than ever, but they’re also stepping up the lifestyle around it. The latest goes beyond offering owners airport lounges by upping the ante with dedicated private airport terminals.
While NetJets recently announced construction of new exclusive-use terminal in the golf hotspot of Augusta, Georgia; Flexjet is at the forefront with the opening of a new standard-setting private terminal at the UK’s Farnborough Airport, which debuted on September 10. About an hour outside of London, Farnborough Airport is dedicated to private aviation, with a main FBO terminal serving multiple operators and open to anyone flying out of Farnborough.
Related article: A Guide to London’s Private Jet Terminals
But for Flexjet (who just over a year ago, received an $800m equity investment from LVMH-backed firm L Catterton), it wasn’t private – or special – enough. So the aviation leaders created a ground-up new build, the first of its kind in Europe, for Flexjet aircraft owners and their guests only. Separate from Farnborough’s main terminal and overlooking a tarmac ramp lined with the parked Flexjet fleet, which includes over 350 private jets and helicopters, the two-story, 2,098-sq-meter construction cost a reported $34m.
Inside you’ll find an owners’ bar and lounge with floor-to-ceiling airfield views, private meeting spaces, separate security screening and immigration, and behind-the-scenes spaces including a Tactical Control Center (on the upper floor) and cabin-server training academy with kitchens (with the same equipment used onboard). The new terminal also incorporates 138 solar panels and a siphonic drainage system for rainwater collection.
Related article: Fine Dining at 35,000 ft: The Best First‑Class Airline Menus in the World
Dedicated private terminals are more common in the US; however, this is setting a new standard globally. “What you see [with the new private terminal] is our commitment to global expansion; an investment for the next decade plus, hand in hand with our fleet,” says Flexjet’s CEO Mike Silvestro. “This is the blueprint of what a branded FBO can be. There’s no comparison.” Silvestro isn’t just talking about Flexjet’s competition, but also about the company’s existing private terminals, of which there are currently nine open or in the works in the US.
This new benchmark was partially achieved via the stylish, practical interior design by Carver Hain Art + Design, the firm also behind Mayfair’s Flexjet House, a client-facing experience center and office. “Flexjet emphasized that this should speak to a European aesthetic,” says Tracy Hain of Carver Hain Art + Design.
Related article: The Best Private Jet Interior Designers You Need to Know
For the Canada-based design firm, this meant commissioning an artwork by British Canadian David Spriggs: an installation of layers of panels drawing to mind cirrus clouds and wingtip vortices, for the entry passage to the lounge. He also created bespoke tables for the lobby lounge from sourced Rolls-Royce propellers. There are also displays of large-scale photographs taken at Flexjet’s Europe-based owner events, like the snow polo world cup in St. Moritz, which Flexjet sponsors with its own team.
However, the design showpiece – and most fun feature – is in the G700 lounge, where guests find a full-size replica of the fuselage of Flexjet’s flagship Gulfstream 700, complete with bedroom suite. To bring this space to life, Carver Hain took inspiration from Flexjet’s extensive library in Cleveland, Ohio, the brand’s global HQ. “It’s definitely a ‘design moment,’” she says.
