KKR, a New York investment firm, announced last week it plans to put another $40 million in Jet Edge International, an aircraft charter and management business at Van Nuys Airport.
The investment by KKR follows the New York firm’s $150 million credit investment announced earlier in the year.
The funding will support Jet Edge’s Reserve membership program and rapidly expand its fleet. Last month the company announced it would add 16 Bombardier Challengers and 11 Gulfstream G450 aircraft to be delivered by the end of the year.
The Reserve membership program offers priority access to Jet Edge’s fleet of aircraft, streamlines the charter process and provides simplicity and flexibility to frequent private aircraft flyers. Members have access to exclusive benefits, including bonus flight credits, catering and elite benefits through Jet Edge’s global partnerships with Montage International, Discovery Land Co., and Four Seasons Hawaii Collection, Jet Edge said in a release.
Jet Edge Chief Executive Bill Papariella said the company has successfully executed numerous growth initiatives because of KKR’s initial financing and will continue to build its platform with the new investment.
“This financing speaks to KKR’s continued confidence in our business plan to deliver scaled private aviation solutions and we look forward to being able to provide even more clients unique access to our industry-leading fleet across all major markets in the United States,” Papariella said in a statement.
Dan Pietrzak, a partner at KKR, said the firm was pleased to invest in the growth of Jet Edge as a scaled private aviation operator with a mid-sized and large cabin fleet.
“At a time when the private aviation industry is experiencing historically high demand, the Jet Edge team continues to impress us with its innovative solutions to age-old inefficiencies and strong operational execution,” Pietrzak said in a statement.