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“Hello?”
“Rick? Oh hello, how are things?”
“Good, good yep, we do have the Challenger in inventory right now. Are you looking for something?”
“Rick?... Rick?...damn.”
“Faith, can you call Rick back real quick? The call dropped.”
“Sorry, that was Rick Hendrick, had to take the call.”
I overheard Tom McCune’s phone conversation as I waited in the granite and leather lobby of Corporate Fleet Services, Tom McCune’s 22-year-old jet brokerage company. Based in north Charlotte, Corporate Fleet Services has grown to be the third largest broker-reseller of jets in the world.
I found out about Corporate Fleet Services when I searched Google as I was preparing the luxury issue. An airplane broker based right here in Mecklenburg County didn’t whisper luxury so much as scream it like a hungry baby in church, which was just the touch this issue needed. I called them up, explained what I had in mind, and 24 hours later I’m sitting at a conference table with Tom, his son Mitch and a couple of back issues of Uptown, selling my soul to the devil to try and get a jet for a couple of hours.
For free.
So after Tom finished his call with Rick Hendrick, he turned to me and we started discussing how I can borrow his $12 million jet.
McCune: “So what is it that you’re trying to do?”
Me: “I would like to borrow a jet for a fashion shoot we have coming up. Actually it’s on this coming
Monday.” This was the Wednesday before I needed the plane.
McCune: “And what are you going to do with this plane?”
Me: “We’re not going to take it anywhere; we just plan on using it for a fashion shoot, have it in the background, maybe take some pictures inside the plane, that sort of thing.”
McCune: “What time are you thinking of doing this?”
Me: “We’d like to have it Monday morning around 9.”
McCune: Punching some buttons on the speakerphone…“Mitch, can you come here for a minute?”
Mitch: “Sure.”
Mitch came in and started talking jets with his dad, discussing all the options they have, and which one would look best. My hopes of borrowing a jet rose.
McCune: “Won’t it be pretty cold?”
Me: Thinking, “why does it matter if it’s cold, is this some jet thing I’m unaware of? “Probably, but not too bad.”
McCune: “Well, wouldn’t the girls be cold? We could warm the jet up for you.”
Me: “Sure, but maybe we can bring some coats or something.” (I’m afraid that with the price of jet fuel, this fashion shoot could cost me a couple thousand dollars.)
McCune: “No problem, we can start up the APU and warm the plane up for the girls.”
At this point McCune started talking jets with me, actually showing me slides of the Corporate Fleet Service inventory. I nod knowingly to the questions and try and follow along, but I have absolutely no knowledge of jets, planes or anything that flies, and I was floored by the fact that I was being presented with a smorgasbord of multimillion-dollar jets to choose from.
Afterwards, when we’d decided on the Challenger 601-3A, and with my curiosity piqued, I asked McCune about the Corporate Fleet Service mission. What, exactly, is a jet broker-reseller, in layman’s terms?
“You can think of us as a used car dealer, but for private jets. We purchase jets from corporations, rehab them and turn around and sell them to anyone in the world. Russia and India are real big right now.”
How do you get to the point where you can buy close to $100 million in wide body jets?
“We have been in the business now for over 22 years and are the third-largest dealer in the world, so our credit is good, with backing from Bank of America to Lear.”
So to not jeopardize our jet, I quickly wrap things up with Tom and head back to the offices already anticipating a tour of the mile high club in a couple short days.
Epilogue:
McCune graciously provided us his jet free of charge, along with a pilot and someone to move the plane around for us (and it was warm enough on Monday so that the models were comfortable). If you or anyone you know needs a 10-passenger internationally capable wide body business jet, give the folks up at Corporate Fleet Services a call at 704-359-0007 or find them online at http://www.cfsjets.com.
~ Todd Trimakas
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