Air taxi service provider Wijet to upgrade business jet fleet with 16 HondaJet worth $78M

SINGAPORE. Honda Aircraft Company and Wijet, a provider of air taxi service currently operating 15 business jets throughout Europe, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for multiple HondaJet light business jets (bizjets) to upgrade the Wijet fleet. Honda Aircraft announced the MoU at the Singapore Airshow, where the HondaJet is making its first-ever appearance.

“By adding 16 HondaJets to its fleet, Wijet becomes the worldwide official launch airline for the new business jet, the fastest and most comfortable very light jet in its class. The contract is worth $78 million at catalog price,” Wijet officials say. “The first aircraft will be delivered in March 2018 with deliveries staged over the next 18 months.”

Wijet, the first French air taxi company, offers travel to roughly 1,200 airports throughout Europe and North Africa. Wijet’s mission is to provide customers with the most modern and advanced aircraft with high performance, efficiency, and reliability.

“There is no comparison to the HondaJet, in its category,” adds Patrick Hersent, CEO of Wijet. “For our customers we offer the best-of-the-best in terms of products and experience while providing our partners with a safe and superior product at an affordable rate. The HondaJet does all of these things.”

The HondaJet is a light, compact and fuel-efficient super-modern business jet. Capable of a max cruise speed of 780 kph, it offers a range enabling Wijet to connect Paris, one of its 12 bases, to destinations inaccessible until now with planes in this class. These destinations include major cities in North Africa as well as Athens.

"No other plane today can rival the performances of the HondaJet in its category," stresses Wijet Group CEO, Patrick Hersent "With this new business jet, Wijet can offer its clients the very best in terms of safety, speed, choice of destinations and comfort at super-competitive prices.”

"After our acquisition of our British counterpart Blink Ltd, this fleet overhaul supported by the HondaJet marks a major new step in Wijet's growth," adds Wijet co-founder Alexandre Azoulay.

The HondaJet is currently certified in Europe (European Aviation Safety Agency), the United States (Federal Aviation Administration), Mexico (Directorate General of Civil Aviation), Canada (Transport Canada), and Brazil (Brazilian National Civil Aviation Agency).

“I am delighted that Wijet has chosen the HondaJet to provide their customers with the exceptional experience of the most advanced light jet on the market,” says Honda Aircraft President and CEO Michimasa Fujino. “I am confident the HondaJet will meet and exceed their expectations with its quietest, most spacious, and most comfortable cabin in its class combined with unrivaled speed, efficiency, and amenities like a fully-private lavatory and Wi-Fi connectivity.”

Wijet is one of the fastest-growing on-demand airlines in Europe and the first air taxi airline in France, company officials say. “It will enable you to travel all around Europe and North Africa (to over 1,200 different airports), conveniently and safely. Beyond being the highest insured private jet operator in Europe, we follow a unique business model worldwide: ‘One price, one aircraft type, one service.’ Clear, efficient, competitive, Wijet is the new generation of private aviation.”

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