Wheels Up (WUP, Teterboro) founder and CEO Kenneth Dichter has confirmed the New York-based subscription carrier has ordered seventeen Beech (twin turboprop) King Air 350i from Beechcraft (Wichita Beech Factory).
According to the Wichita Eagle paper, the order will bring to seventy-five, the number of King Airs in service for Wheels Up.
The purchase comes on the back of a USD90 million debt funding commitment from New York-based private equity firm, KKR & Co.
As part of its growth plans, Wheels Up will also add an unspecified number of Cessna Citation Xs to its portfolio which, aside from the King Airs, also includes fifteen pre-owned Cessna Citation Excel/XLS business jets.
Though Wheels Up owns the aircraft, it does not operate them preferring to delegate that task to AL!GMU.
