History

In 2004, ABS Jets was established in Prague, Czech Republic. On 30th November, ABS Jets was issued an AOC, EASA Part 145 and CAMO, this signalled the moment when ABS Jets began as a business jet operator and entered the European business aviation market. The company started with 32 employees and managing two business jets, a Citation Bravo – registration OK-VSZ and its first Embraer Legacy 600 – registration OK-SLN. At that time it was decided to develop business jet operations with a view to having an ABS Jets FBO facility, including a hangar and a significant fleet of aircraft. Another development was to initiate a policy of adding one aircraft to the fleet every year. With a team of 32 employees, 2 management aircraft, rented offices and a hangar at Prague Ruzyne Airport, thus began the history of the Czech and Slovak operated ABS Jets…

ABS Jets marked another step in its development when it began managing the operations of another Embraer Legacy aircraft. ABS Jets fleet continued to grow, for in that year another Legacy 600 was delivered – registration OK-KKG. By the end of 2005, ABS Jets had approximately 45 employees, managed 3 aircraft, and had moved into the rented hangar offices of Aviation Services, where it would be for the next 2 years at Prague Ruzyne Airport.

By 2006, ABS Jets was taking great strides forward. A significant milestone in ABS Jets‘ history was reached with the purchase of the 3,000 m2 Hangar C from ČSA – the hangar became a major asset for ABS Jets, adding to the already considerable historical heritage of the hangar, which was built in 1937. Flight operations increased significantly in 2006, leading to achieving a remarkable 2,370 flight hours. Another new Legacy aircraft was added to the growing fleet – registration OK-SUN.

ABS Jets‘ growth continued rapidly in 2007. In that year, ABS Jets marked a major achievement in its history by becoming an Embraer Authorised Service Centre. This helped ABS Jets build on its status as a fast growing operator on the European market. By this time the company had grown to 100 employees and was managing a fleet of 6 business jets. With such significant steps, ABS Jets‘ management made the decision to initiate a new strategic plan. A new subsidiary was then opened in Bratislava.
Meanwhile the fleet of aircraft continued to grow when ABS Jets were chosen to receive the delivery of the 100th Legacy produced by the Embraer aircraft manufacturer – registration OK-GGG. In the same year, ABS Jets acquired its first Bombardier Business Jet, a Learjet 60XR – registration OK-JDM. The year concluded with ABS Jets posting its first year of profitable trading accounts.

In 2008 ABS Jets become certified as a flight support provider. It was also the year when the company became an Authorised FBO handling agent at Prague Ruzyne Airport. During 2008, ABS Jets achieved 10,000 flight hours and continued to expand its fleet with the addition of another Legacy aircraft – registration OK-ROM. By end of the year, the company operated from its own facilities at its Prague headquarters with a fleet of 7 aircraft, 120 employees, and plans to open an FBO in Bratislava. By expanding the ABS Jets fleet and increasing the portfolio of services the company could offer, ABS Jets became the largest business aviation operator on the Czech and Slovak markets and started to play a key role in the development of business aviation in the CEE region.

At this time ABS Jets attracted international attention when the company was awarded “The Best company in the field of Business Aviation” by the prestigious Overseas Living Magazine. The panel of judges recognised the high quality of the work carried out by ABS Jets and was impressed by the wide portfolio of services that ABS Jets had to offer. Another accolade came when ABS Jets was named a “Preferred Handling Vendor” for Universal Weather and Aviation for the Czech and Slovak Republics. A remarkable step in the development of ABS Jets took place in 2009. This was when ABS Jets became the Embraer ASR (Authorised Sales Representative) to sell Embraer Executive Jets on the Czech and Slovak markets, including aircraft such as the Legacy 600, Phenom 100 and Phenom 300 Business Jets. This development clearly demonstrated how ABS Jets had gained a trustworthy reputation on the international market as well as the strengthening cooperation with Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica S.A. (Embraer).
Yet again the fleet of aircraft continued to grow with another Legacy aircraft added to the fleet – registration OK-JNT – making ABS Jets one of the biggest Legacy operators in the region. By this point, the number of staff had grown to 150 employees. Another fulfilment of ABS Jets’ plans was the opening of an FBO in Bratislava. Another accolade underlining ABS Jets‘ commitment to safety was an award from NBAA – the NBAA Commercial Business Flying Safety Award. This was for completing 6 years and 12,673 consecutive flying hours without accident or incident involving damage to property or injury to persons. This highly successful year concluded with ABS Jets posting a gross profit of EUR 1 million.

In 2010 ABS Jets become one of the leading European Business Jet Operators with a fleet that had grown to 11 aircraft for both commercial and private operation. This growth meant that at that stage there were nearly 200 employees, 30 of whom were in Bratislava. Another chapter opened in the history of ABS Jets when on 22nd October work commenced on the new 6,000 m2 ABS Jets Hangar N at Prague Ruzyne Airport. Meanwhile in December, construction work got underway in Slovakia on a new ABS Jets office building at Bratislava Airport, to enhance the Slovak subsidiary, which at that time was offering aircraft support services including FBO and line maintenance.

ABS Jets received other awards. An award given in the domestic market is the CEKIA Stability Award, given to Top Czech market leaders. ABS Jets was among the Top 7 companies in the Transport & Logistics sector and gained an AAA rating, which is the top rating and reflects the strong business position of the company. On the international market, ABS Jets was one of the 5 winners in the Private Aviation category in The Fast 50 report, which was issued by The New Europe magazine. The report recognises the world’s 50-fastest-growing companies.
In September 2011, the dream came true, with the opening of a brand new hangar, ABS Jets N at Prague Ruzyne Airport (LKPR). The new facility offers 6,000 m2 of hangar space and clearly shows the key role ABS Jets plays in the business aviation industry in the CEE region.
In this year, ABS Jets further consolidated its relationship with Embraer by renewing the Embraer Executive Jets Authorised Sales Representative contract for another 2 years.

At the beginning of the year, the ABS Jets fleet continued to grow thanks to the delivery of a new Phenom 300.
ABS Jets celebrated another success when it was awarded an NBAA Pilot Safety Award for 5,500 flying hours without accident, incident, or damage and injury to people and property, for Štefan Kukura (ABS Jets Flight Operations Manager, Chief Pilot Legacy). The outstanding number of aircraft movements also reflected the increasing popularity of ABS Jets Executive Handling Services, when the company celebrated having handled its 7,000th aircraft since 2008.
ABS Jets has 200 employees, a fleet of 13 aircraft based in Prague and Bratislava, 2 hangars at Prague Airport with a capacity of 9,000 m2, has flown 19,938 flight hours, and has offices at Prague and Bratislava Airports. The future is good, as ABS Jets looks forward to new challenges. The highly dedicated team at ABS Jets is looking forward to achieving even more with a set of objectives to further increase and expand the company. ABS Jets has set a new series of challenges, targets, and dreams to grow and expand the company. The team looks forward to further cooperation with manufacturers and suppliers and to constantly improving services for its clients.