MAC Air Group bolsters fleet with addition of five new aircraft to AOC.

Tuesday 3rd February 2015

First shuttle service links New York with Bahamas.

Portland, Maine-based MAC Air Group will be exhibiting at the annual Schedulers and Dispatchers conference taking place in San Jose, CA, 3-6 February 2015, to talk up the addition of five new aircraft to its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) in the last nine months. The family run business has inducted five new aircraft into the charter fleet; with a sixth aircraft serving a shuttle service that began in December 2014.

Added to the existing charter fleet is a Dassault Falcon 2000, which is fully WiFi equipped, a Hawker 800 XP and Hawker 800, all based at Boca Raton, FL (BCT). In addition a Bombardier Challenger 850 with a completely refurbished interior incorporating WiFi connectivity is based at Stewart, NY (SWF) and a Citation SSII, with a Sierra Super modification giving it an extended range, is located at its home-base of Portland ME.

The additional aircraft, which join an existing fleet of three Challenger 850s, based in Portsmouth, NH (PSM), White Plains, NY (HPN); and a 16-seat 850 based in Scottsdale, AZ  (SDL), four Hawker 1000s, based in the Northeast, and a Learjet 60 based in Burlington, VT (BTV), are managed by Maine Aviation Aircraft Charter, part of the MAC Air Group.  "The convenient base locations combined with the popularity of these models has seen an average of 35 - 45 hours per month across our entire fleet," comments Allyn Caruso, President of MAC Air Group.

The growing customer base includes celebrities, including many singers and entertainers who find the Challenger 850's are comfortable, roomy and ideal for their long domestic and international tours.  "We've seen an upturn in the longer range flights which has driven an increase in our charter hours and we anticipate that 2015 will be even busier," continues Caruso.

First shuttle service added to mix.

In addition to the charter activity Maine Aviation Aircraft Charter, began its first ever corporate, shuttle service in December 2014. Served by a 15 passenger VIP Challenger 850 the flight originates in New York on a Friday and travels to The Bahamas, from which it returns on a Sunday. The frequency is extended during the holidays to cover increased demand from the client.

The aircraft has been under Maine Aviation's management for a couple of year's and was selected for the specialized shuttle service owing to its size and range.   "We are seeing high demand with passenger numbers of up to 15 making the most of the convenient point to point service," says Caruso about the shuttle. "We are already looking at other areas for this type of service," he concludes.

MAC Air Group will be exhibiting on booth 1829 during the Schedulers and Dispatchers show and look forward to welcoming delegates.

MAC Air Group has appointed Emerald Media, the business aviation PR specialist as its external media agency.  Emerald Media also supports The RAA in the USA along with Flying Colours Corporation and MSB Design in Canada. The Emerald US and UK offices are marking 21 years of operations this year.

About MAC Air Group

Brothers Joe and Tom Caruso founded Bar Harbor Airways in 1947, and then in 1959, Joe Caruso moved his family to Portland, where he established Maine Aviation Corporation. Allyn "Al" Caruso, Joe's son now runs Maine Aviation with his wife, Alysan, General Manager, and their son, Travis is the company's Vice President of Maintenance.

The company offers aircraft management, maintenance, charter, aircraft sales and shared ownership programs.  It prides itself on an excellent reputation for exceptional standards of safety reliability and professionalism.