Synergy Aviation, based at Fairoaks airport in the UK, says that its fleet of King Airs has enjoyed a very busy summer of flying for passenger charter and last minute organ transportation. “We've been flying on average two jobs a day, sometimes three,” states MD Tom Wells. “Managing this to maximise our availability and to ensure that we can service all of our client requirements fully has been a challenge at times, but it's a great challenge to have and one that the team has really revelled in. We are hoping to keep the pace and momentum up through the winter now and are looking forward to a busy last quarter.

“We have a King Air 200, which we are managing for a private owner, that recently had the new composite MT five-blade propellers fitted as well as a Garmin G1000 NXi upgrade. It also has full Raisbeck mods, giving it great short field performance, and has Blackhawk engines and winglets fitted too, so it was a very well-equipped aircraft, even before the upgrade to the MT five-blade props.

“The feedback we have had already from the crew is that the new props are a great investment. Performance is further improved and the speed they are getting out of it when cruising has increased, while being even quieter on the ground.” A lot of the flights Synergy carries out with its King Air fleet are medical, which Wells says is very rewarding.

“A lot of the lifesaving work takes place overnight or very early in the morning with much of our executive charter work being spread across the rest of the day. We can be airborne within an hour of receiving a request and the majority of our work actually comes with two hours or less notice, which always keeps things interesting.

“We primarily keep the aircraft in executive configuration, so if it is a transplant flight we can accommodate the ice boxes and the necessary medical team while always being ready for immediate go-now executive charter. We also do quite a lot of AOG support work for some of the major airlines too, this can be a spare part or engineer or both, to be taken to rescue a stricken aircraft, which by its very nature is usually a go-now mission.”

The company was formed in 2004 by Glen Heavens, who is still very much involved in the business today. Heavens led Synergy to become a well-known and respected turboprop and jet operator, having managed many Citations and other types over the years. He has also developed the Fairoaks Flight Centre flying school with an eight-strong single engine fleet for PPL training.

Wells was previously MD for Europe at Gama Aviation. He, along with another former Gama director Dave Edwards, was looking for a new challenge before the pair joined Heavens at Synergy last year. “We had been looking at forming a completely new operation between us before having a chance conversation with Glen around the current market and his plans for Synergy Aviation. We very quickly realised what a great fit the three of us were and how it just made sense for us to combine our knowledge and experience to form something quite unique in our service offering to the ind-ustry. Between us we have operated and managed more than 300 aircraft over the course of our careers, covering every major manufacturer and almost every type, from single engine piston to large cabin intercontinental jet aircraft.

“The market remains highly competitive and every piece of business is hard to win, yet we have seen some very encouraging signs recently. Industry indicators show that things are ever so slightly on the up and we have certainly started to feel some of that positivity in the conversations we are having with clients, although we are not getting carried away just yet.

“An aircraft is a very high value asset and must be managed properly by a high quality team to maximise that value and realise its full potential as an enabler and business tool.”