Richard Santulli left his position as CEO of NetJets Inc. one year ago and announced Wednesday that he will head a new aviation company. Santulli’s Milestone Aviation Group is setting its legs behind a $500 million investment, a few key former NetJets employees, and a plan to buy new and used jets and helicopters, which it then plans to lease. Santulli’s position is chairman, while the company’s president, Daniel Rosenthal, is a former NetJets vice president; its CEO, William Kelly, was the head of NetJets Europe; and a host of other former NetJets employees make up Milestone’s leadership. The new company is based in Dublin, Ireland, but has an office in Columbus, Ohio, which is also the home of NetJets. That said, Milestone is not designed to compete with NetJets.
Milestone is seeking to fill the needs of those who need aircraft but have been unable to acquire 100-percent financing from lenders or quick approval from lenders, according to the Columbus Business Journal. The company says it will be looking beyond a potential client’s balance sheet to make financing (and aircraft) available to companies with solid flight departments and structure. Santulli’s new company has just 10 employees, but does have plans to grow.
