McDonald's And Starbucks Are Buying Private Jets Again
Oct 22, 2013, 00:44 IST
Andrew Redington/Getty ImagesMajor U.S. corporations including McDonald's and Starbucks are reinvesting in private jets after several years of delaying upgrades to their aircraft, Bloomberg's Thomas Black reports.
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McDonald's purchased a Bombardier Challenger 605 - which carries up to 13 passengers - to replace an existing jet in February, and Starbucks Corp. bought a Gulfstream G550 in June, according to the report. Johnson & Johnson bought the same Gulfstream model, which seats up to 18 passengers, in August.
The purchases signify a bright spot in an otherwise bleak outlook for private jet sales, which have remained stagnant throughout the economic downturn after a period of growth in the early 2000s.
"The ultra-rich and the bigger corporations came through the downturn of 2008/2009 fine and can still afford expensive biz jets," George Ferguson, a senior analyst at Bloomberg Industries told Black. "The aspirational buyers had incomes change the most due to the downturn and they haven't returned to the market."