Jennifer Harrington

JetDirect Aviation, the former charter arm of the now-defunct Sentient Jet Holdings, laid off approximately 20 employees this week. (Sentient Jet Holdings last month reorganized into two companies: Sentient Flight Group, a jet card/charter broker; and JetDirect Aviation. JetDirect has been slowly eliminating overhead positions for the past three months in an attempt to “right-size” the company following the numerous acquisitions under the Sentient banner, according to JetDirect senior vice president of marketing Gil Wolin. “The intent in buying these organizations and molding them into one was to generate some kind of scale,” he told AIN. “The previous management never eliminated duplication, never consolidated or right-sized. So that’s what’s been going on.” The company has also laid off “between 20 and 30” pilots over the last three months, as a direct result of a decrease in charter demand. “We reduced the size of the pilot pool to support the aircraft [and] match demand,” Wolin said. “You never like to let anybody go, but the numbers from ARG/US are showing that charter is off anywhere from 20 to 40 percent, depending on aircraft type.” The company employs approximately 1,000 pilots for its fleet of 270 aircraft.

News and issues concerning the aviation charter and fractional-ownership industries and markets, including company announcements, regulations, new developments and labor issues.