Marian Jancarik, Managing Director of aircraft brokerage Jetron, joins Alasdair on this week's episode of the CJI Podcast. Marian traces his path from selling small commuter turboprops in Slovakia, through roles at Seagle Air and ABS Jets, into aircraft sales for Embraer in Saudi Arabia during the 2008–09 downturn, to founding Jetron five years ago. 

The discussion covers how far client education has come — from explaining basic ownership costs to today's highly informed buyers — and Jetron's "525" growth plan built around staying a focused, boutique European brokerage rather than chasing global scale. Jankaric contrasts his team-first model with larger brokerages where salespeople compete internally, talks through Jetron's transatlantic deal flow despite its regional reputation, and reflects on generational shifts among both buyers and his own team, including his teenage son's growing interest in the business. 

He closes with practical advice for first-time buyers (charter extensively before purchasing) and reflects on the emotional, high-pressure realities of brokering and aircraft management.

Dan Drohan, founder and CEO, Solairus, takes us through his acquisition of Clay Lacy's aircraft management and charter businesses.

He talks through the road to 500+ managed aircraft, extending Solaris's client aviation manager model across the combined fleet and defending against rival operators circling Clay Lacy clients.

Drohan also reflects on how the deal came together through his relationship with Clay Lacy's Brian Kirkdoffer, and why — despite the numbers — this was never about chasing scale for its own sake.

Apologies for the sound quality on the CJI side. Our mic has died.  

Kaye Gitibin spotted something nobody else cared about. Private jet passengers were landing at FBOs across America and being handed dirty, smoke-stained cars dragged over from commercial airports. So he started GoRentals — one location, seven cars, zero ad budget.

Thirty years later he runs the only Forbes five-star car rental company in the world, at over 300 FBOs nationwide. His secret? He never called it a car rental company. It's hospitality. The car just comes with it.

Alan Walsh didn't come from aviation. He spent 20 years in tech before a chance meeting with Flexjet's Andrew Collins led him to Sentient Jet in 2019. Seven years on, he runs the largest jet card company in the US, with 7,000 card owners and a 90%+ retention rate. 

His philosophy is simple: obsessive service. Sentient answers every call, real human, no phone tree, within 15 seconds, 24/7. The World Cup just delivered their busiest summer yet, with 40% week on week growth. And with high net worth individuals in the US projected to grow 50% over four years, he sees no slowdown ahead. 

Kerstin Mumenthaler, CEO of Axis Aviation, joins us to explain why her company sees itself as an asset manager, not just an operator.

She breaks down Axis's multi-AOC setup across Switzerland, Austria, San Marino and South Africa, why a proprietary governance platform — not flying — is the real product, and the strategy behind the upcoming US expansion. 

Kerstin also discusses the AXAero group's full pilot-to-owner ecosystem, why radical billing transparency is changing how owners trust their operators, and the career path that took her from airline pilot to crisis management consultant to running a fast-growing fleet of 50+ aircraft.

In our latest episode we are joined by Yann Nado, business development director at multi-service business aviation company Global Jet Concept.

With 22 years in business aviation sales, Yann's passion was sparked not by aircraft but by the clientele he serves. A champion of transparency and long-term partnerships, he specialises in large-cabin aircraft management, sales and charter. 

We discuss a focus on high-growth African and Middle Eastern markets, how the company has gone paperless, development of in-house software for fuel optimisation, HR, client reporting and AI-driven budget modeling and why despite high fuel prices, aircraft acquisition demand remains strong. Plus much more besides. 

If it feels like people are throwing money at you, it’s probably too good to be true. Sellers have been motivated by easy money in past business cycles, and there’s a real danger of that happening again now.
 
Jay Mesinger, CEO and President of Mesinger Jet Sales, says this goes all the way back to the days when aircraft sales were conducted via fax machine. The machine would ring and unsolicited offers would come streaming in. The same thing happened again with email after the COVID lockdowns ended.
 
High demand and low supply are both good news and bad news. The shift in market balance causes prices to firm up (and sometimes increase), but it can also lead sellers to believe the entire process can be compressed. That forces everyone to work transactions in a much more difficult environment. Pre-buys get denied. Closings get rushed without proper due diligence — the kind that’s critical for such a significant long-term purchase. Suddenly, the value of professional representation starts to look less important.
 
It sounds great if you’re a seller. But sellers can easily get caught up in the euphoria. Why pay for representation when buyers are lining up with offers? But wait — is this too good to be true? You bet it can be.
 

Speakers include:

Jay Mesinger, CEO, Mesinger Jet Sales

Mary Comazzi, Partner with Barnes & Thornburg

David Norton, Partner, Shackelford, McKinley & Norton

Joanne Barbera, Partner, Barbera & Watkins, LLC

Mike Swift, group vice president of sales responsible for Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia-Pacific at Gulfstream, takes us through the bright spots in his huge region.

This includes increased momentum in China, why India's growth story is finally arriving, and why the Middle East and Africa keep delivering despite the headlines. 

Mike also unpacks what separates buyers across regions and his "long-term greedy" approach to the business. He also explains why Gulfstream's black curtains keep him excited about the future. 

Shawn Holstein, President/CEO and co-founder of Holstein Aviation, joined host Al to discuss the company's 16-year journey. Founded in 2010 by Shawn, his father Jim, and colleague Brad Stancil after leaving Hawker Beechcraft, Holstein has grown into a top-10 global brokerage built on integrity, objectivity, and deep industry relationships.

Shawn discussed a slight market softening in mid-2025 but remains optimistic, expecting a strong Q4 driven by tax incentives and opportunistic buyers. The firm covers everything from turboprops to large-cabin jets, with a growing presence in Brazil and a toe in yacht brokerage.

On AI, he predicts it will actually boost private aviation demand — as trust in digital communication erodes, face-to-face meetings become more valuable. His advice to newcomers: be patient, build your network, and don't expect quick wins. What keeps him going after 16 years? Seeing the look on a client's face when you deliver exactly what they need.

In our latest episode we welcome James Chitty, CEO and partner at Talon Air. 

Chitty has been in the aviation business for nearly two decades. He founded PlaneClear in 2008 and led it through to 2016 before partnering with Apollo Jets and then taking on the role of CEO at Talon Air following its acquisition in 2018. Three years later, Vista acquired a minority stake in Talon before Chitty, and his chief operating officer Nicholas Piazza led a buyout which officially closed on Jan 2nd this year. 

Chitty discusses his time in business aviation, what is new now the company is independent, his leadership style and what he requires of his team, challenges faced by the industry and much more besides.