Jet, set, change

With an eye on the growing number of business jetsetters, Airbus Industrie has gone in for a brand refresh of its corporate jets division.

As the Airbus ACJ 318 corporate jet takes off, the metallic blue shading on its fuselage and tail glints in the sun. These are the new colours that the French aircraft manufacturer's corporate jets are sporting these days. Better known for its commercial passenger liners — the A320s, A 330s A-340s and A380s — Airbus Industrie has sold more than 170 corporate jets for private use around the world. Now, it is trying to make this division even more visible by going in for a rebranding exercise — changing colours, the name — instead of the earlier Corporate Jetflier, it is called Airbus Corporate Jets — and logo.

In an exclusive interview to BrandLine at the Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, where this correspondent was invited, David Velupillai, Product Marketing Director, Airbus Corporate Jets, explains the reasoning behind the change. Excerpts from the interview:

Why the decision to go in for a rebranding?

In rebranding we have effectively done a couple of things. We have introduced fresh corporate jets that reflect the constant innovation that we have in all aircraft, but mostly in the 320 family. We have gone in for a more coherent and consistent naming of the aircraft. Now all the corporate jets are ACJ and then the three numbers of the aircraft be it the ACJ 318 right up to A380.

What difference do these changes make for the end-user?

It is just an easier way. For example, earlier we used to call the corporate jet version of the A-318 the A-318 Elite. Today, we will call it the Airbus ACJ 318. We used to call the Airbus A-319 corporate jet the Airbus Corporate Jetliner, now we call it ACJ 319. So it is less confusing for the customer. The new colours highlight innovation and commonality that we have throughout the modern Airbus family and the corporate jets family.

What drove the entire exercise?

It has more to do with keeping the brand fresh. We are constantly innovating with the aircraft. We are introducing new technologies regularly. We spend about Euro 100 million annually just on the Airbus A-320 family, introducing new things in the cockpit and in the cabin. These include things for the passengers and things to improve the economy among others.

Two of the biggest changes are getting sharklets (a fuel saving innovation in winglet design) which will improve the economics and give the aircraft a nicer look, especially if you are a corporate jet customer. Further down the road, it will also have a new engine option. Although we have the most modern aircraft family to start with, the A-320 family, indeed the entire Airbus family, is less than 23 years old. But despite already having a modern design, we do not stop there. When new and material technology comes along, we introduce it in the aircraft. For example, we originally had cathode ray display tubes in the cockpit, but years ago we moved to liquid crystal display which is much lighter, lasts longer and consumes less power. We are introducing new things in the cockpit, some of which is there to make the pilots' lives easier, some are there to improve efficiency. The new colours represent our wish to reflect these innovations and improvements and a new branding.

Will the various Airbus Corporate Jets (ACJs) in India be recalled to make any changes?

No. We can offer customers improvements in two ways. Firstly, new customers will benefit from the newer standard of aircraft because we are implementing the changes in the aircraft that we produce. Besides, many of these improvements are available as retrofit. So the customer can ask Airbus to provide a retrofit. But typically a retrofit can be done by the customer in his home base.

How do you see the Indian market growing for private jets?

The Asian market is the fastest growing market in the world.

Asia extends from?

Asia for us is from India to Japan to Australia and New Zealand. That is the fastest growing market in the world. But India is less developed than Europe or America or West Asia in terms of corporate jets. Essentially, a corporate jet helps a large company to be more successful as it helps its business grow faster. So if you have many large companies making use of corporate jets, then it is no exaggeration to say that they can literally help a country's economy grow. Because a corporate jet is basically a business tool, it helps executives and employees to be more productive. They can achieve more in the time available.

We do see India as an important market for Airbus corporate jets. The big thing that Airbus has to offer this market is the cabin. When you look at the aircraft from outside we are almost the same dimension in terms of wingspan and length as the Gulfstream and Bombardier corporate jets. But we are twice as big inside.

What segment of the market do ACJs cater to?

Airbus is only in the top-end of the market. And for all of the large jets you will need a paved runway. But what is good about ACJs is that we can land and take off in about the same distance as a Gulfstream or Bombardier.

We are the new top-end of the market. That is very important because if you are already flying a corporate jet or even if you are a newly-made billionaire looking for something that is better than what you have today. So, we are naturally well placed because we have a cabin that is twice as big as a traditional corporate jet's.

The other thing that we can offer is the ability to carry larger groups of people be it employees, extended families or Government delegations.

So, how many can you carry and what distances can you cover going from ACJ-318 to ACJ-380?

Typically, the aircraft will be configured to carry 18 passengers. But it can be configured to carry more. We have configured it to carry 40 or 50 passengers. Most customers are looking for the kind of comfort and space that they have on the ground be in their homes or offices in the air.

What kind of market do you see for such jets in India?

In China, we see a market for five Airbus Corporate jets a year just going forward. Typically, they would be either the ACJ-318, the ACJ-319 or the ACJ-320. We have not said a specific figure for India; it would probably be a little less than China's. But the need is there. Historically, we have sold the most ACJs in West Asia and Europe. But that is going to change because China is such a fast-growth market. Just as on the airline side, the Asia Pacific, including India and China, will be the big growth market for the ACJs.

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