The rise of Dubai as a major node of global aviation is one of the industry’s most remarkable growth stories over the last quarter of a century.
This success has also been mirrored in the field of executive aviation, with the emirate also becoming a key service hub for a growing fleet of private jets serving VIP demand from across the Middle East and the neighboring regions of Africa and Asia.
So, it is no surprise that Comlux, one of the world’s leading executive aviation operators and one of the few catering to the highest end of the market, has selected Dubai Al Maktoum International Airport (DWC) as the location of its new state-of-the-art service center.
The facility became operational in the third quarter of 2024 (Q3 2024) but will make its grand public unveiling during the MEBAA Show 2024, the largest executive aviation event in the Middle East, which takes place at DWC Airport on December 10-12, 2024.
AeroTime spoke with Joseph Huber, Comlux Vice Chairman and Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO), ahead of the event in order to learn more about the new facility and what it heralds for the firm’s ambitions in the Middle East and beyond.
Huber, who is also one of the firm’s shareholders, has been working side by side with Comlux Chairman and CEO, Richard Gaona for more than 18 years, to make this company a rare example of a fully vertically integrated executive aviation operator.
No one is better positioned than Huber to comment on the significance of this new facility. He has been instrumental in the development and completion of this landmark project, which provides Comlux with a significant foothold in the region.
“It has been a very interesting project that responds to the wishes of the operators,” Huber explained. “We built a hangar with the latest technology, with the latest equipment that you use in this kind of building. When you go into the technical room of such a hangar you’ll see. It’s incredible!”
The hangar is almost 5,000 square meters, more than enough space to fit two Airbus A321 aircraft, as well as two large aprons in front of it. Combined, this offers more than 10,000 square meters of space in which you can even park widebody aircraft.
But there’s more to it. The facility will serve a range of other commercial and administrative functions. It also houses the company’s sales and chartering team, which helps the firm’s customers find the right aircraft on demand. In fact, the Comlux sales team was already based in Dubai, which is proof of the growing importance of the city and of the wider Middle East in the private jet charter market.
And that’s not all. Adjacent to the hangar there is also a showroom fully dedicated to the “TwoTwenty” ACJ, the executive version of the Airbus A220 and one of Comlux’s flagship projects.
Comlux worked closely with the European manufacturer for a number of years to bring the executive version of the popular airliner to the market
With the TwoTwenty, Comlux aims to create an entirely new aircraft category within private aviation, combining the spacious cabin of a converted airliner (which, in its commercial version is operated successfully by airlines such as Air France, Delta Air Lines and airBaltic), with the operational economics of smaller purpose-built business jets.
So, to help prospective customers gain a better understanding of this innovative concept, Comlux has built the DWC showroom, complete with a full-scale TwoTwenty mockup. This is in addition to similar showrooms Comlux already has in Zurich and Indianapolis.
The showroom also gives customers the chance to check out samples of the different materials and decorative elements that can be used and combined to configure and decorate the cabin interior.
“We want to be close to our clients and prospects,” Huber said. “If you can touch it [the aircraft mockup], it’s a different experience than when you just talk about it.”
“It’s in the hangar, it’s in the right environment,” he added. “It is much better for a prospect, for a client, to get the feel and touch of the aircraft.”
Comlux’s commitment to Dubai
Huber also underlined how important it is for Comlux to have a presence in Dubai. The region that will be served from the DWC facility, which currently encompasses the Middle East, Africa and South Asia, represents close to 40% of Comlux’s global business.
“This is definitely a very important market for our fleet, as you know, we are mainly operating big aircraft. Middle East, Africa, India: that’s the market,” he explained. “So, when Dubai South [the company managing the development of Al Maktoum Airport and the adjacent districts of Dubai – ed. note], with whom we have a very good relationship, offered us the opportunity to build a hangar in Dubai, we immediately jumped on it. It will be a hub for us in the region where we can support our aircraft.”
“These [aircraft] are not based in Dubai, they are based everywhere, in different regions, but they are flying into Dubai many times,” Huber continued. “That’s why we are super happy to have this hub there to service our fleet and our clients.”
The move of the majority of Dubai’s aeronautical activity to Al Maktoum-DWC, which is slated to take place within the next few years, will give Comlux’s facility an even more central position in the emirate’s aviation ecosystem.
“DWC Airport is now becoming the main airport in Dubai and our hangar is just in the heart of it,” Huber added.
Comlux’s specialty is the operation of very large business jets, a category of aircraft which, according to Huber, is particularly appreciated in the region.
He said: “Compared to other regions where we operate, our clients in the Middle East often travel in big groups. They need much more cargo space, and that’s why they travel with bigger planes.”
In addition to the new facility, Comlux is also planning to showcase one of its largest jets, an executive Boeing 767 called “Sky Lady” which, Huber explained, is extremely popular among customers in the Middle East and Africa.
“We have many returning clients on this aircraft,” he added.
“Dubai is definitely very important for us,” Huber continued. “As always, those regions where the action is are always important for our business. We are focusing not only on Dubai, [but] we are [also] working on different other projects in the region which I am not able to talk about yet. But it is definitely an important place. It is the place to be.”
One thing’s for sure: having a service center in Dubai will help Comlux respond faster to the needs of its customers in the region. Until now, when there was an issue to be fixed, an aircraft may have been sent far away to be serviced. With the new service center, some matters will be dealt with locally.
“For example, if one of our clients in the Middle East has an issue with one of the seats on his plane,” Huber said. “He doesn’t need to go to the US to fix it anymore, we can now fix it there [in Dubai] and solve the problem. So, it makes it easier for the client and for us.”
Huber also revealed that Comlux has invested more than US$20 million in the new hangar, which will provide space for its organic growth in the years to come.
“We still have a lot of space to grow in it,” he said. “We want to activate it as an MRO [Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul] facility and, of course, that will bring more people, more technicians, more action to the building.”
So, what’s next for Comlux in the Middle East?
“We have more aircraft coming to this region,” Huber confirmed. “We are working on other projects as well, but it’s too early to talk about it.”