Turbulent times ahead for Hong Kong’s jet owners

Before the Covid-19 pandemic hit Hong Kong, at least 120-130 private jets would be parked outside a dedicated terminal at the city’s bustling international airport. But when Justin Yeung, strategy head at Hong Kong-based business jet operator Metrojet, went down there to do a count in February, he found just 30. The pandemic has forced even the wealthiest in Asia’s biggest financial hub into some difficult decisions. “We’re talking [owners who are in] the Forbes top 50 and counting downwards,” says Yeung. “They might have homes in many parts of the world and there are aircraft based here which are flying around the EU and US.” But, while some wealthy Hongkongers and mainland Chinese chose to fly their jets abroad, others decided to sell them. Border closures amid the world’s strictest lockdowns have weighed heavily on the region’s private and business travel market. China’s pursuit of a Covid-zero strategy — including a quarantine requirement of several weeks — has upended travel plans for billionaires. Many have opted to base themselves, and their aircraft, in countries with laxer travel rules. Those affected by the restrictions, though, have found a ready market for their aircraft in the US. The administration of former president Donald Trump introduced a tax break allowing individuals to write off the cost of a jet against their federal taxes from September 2017. Mainland China’s business jet fleet shrank slightly from 346 in 2020 to 340 last year, while Hong Kong’s fleet dropped more sharply, from 120 to 101, according to data from travel data provider Asia Sky Media.<br/>