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Flexjet gets largest PE investment ever, Mr. Beast Jet Challenge Fails

Plus, will we see a LV styled private jet any time soon??

AuthorAuthor

Jessica Naor & Preston Holland
July 22, 2025

✈️ The VIP Seat Weekly

Your business aviation hot takes, served fresh

This week: FlexJet raises record $800M from LVMH-backed investors, Joby secretly tests 9-hour hydrogen flight, Mr. Beast's 100-day aircraft challenge, FAA rolls back air traffic controller rest rules, and Bruce Willis lawsuit drama.

Season 2, Episode 8 | July 22, 2025 | Episode Companion

🛫 The Runway Report

The top 5 stories from this week's podcast that are moving the needle in bizav

1️⃣ FlexJet Scores Historic $800M from Louis Vuitton Money

The Scoop: FlexJet secured the largest private equity investment in private aviation history - $800 million from L Catterton (backed by LVMH), KSL Partners, and J. Safra Group. The deal values the company at $4 billion, with the luxury conglomerate taking a 20% stake.

Our Take: Perfect match made in heaven - Louis Vuitton clientele meets private aviation. Might we expect Dom Perignon and LV blankets on every flight? This is Ken Ricci's big recapitalization play, taking chips off the table after years of bolt-on acquisitions.

2️⃣ Joby's Secret Hydrogen Flight Goes 9 Hours

The Scoop: Joby quietly completed a 9-hour hydrogen-powered flight test in their JAI-30 aircraft - a CTOL (conventional takeoff and landing) plane, not their usual eVTOL. This wasn't supposed to be public knowledge, but investors with vested interests figured it out.

Our Take: This is huge for democratizing private aviation. Batteries just ain't it for real range, but hydrogen could be the game-changer. Joby's pivoting from pure eVTOL to exploring all electric aviation options. Smart move - they're becoming the last man standing by gobbling up technology from failed competitors.

3️⃣ Mr. Beast Makes Pilot Live in Hawker for 100 Days

Youtube Views GIF by Marcel Katz / The Art Plug

Gif by theartplug on Giphy

The Scoop: YouTube's Mr. Beast challenged a pilot to stay in what appears to be a $2.5 million Hawker 800XP (circa 2000-2001) for 100 days to win the aircraft. The guy actually did it - 100 days of lunch meat, no shower, uncomfortable sleeping, but still flying daily.

Our Take: Great content, questionable safety. Having a sleep-deprived, malnourished pilot flying daily for entertainment? That's pushing it. Also, dude's about to face a $200K tax bill on his "prize."

4️⃣ FAA Rolls Back Air Traffic Controller Rest Rules (Not Good)

The Scoop: The FAA is walking back plans to give air traffic controllers 12 hours of rest between night shifts and 10 hours for other shifts. Reason? They don't have enough staff to make it work, and the union agreed to the rollback.

Our Take: This is backwards thinking - we're rolling back safety improvements because we can't staff properly? With 11,500 controllers (3,000 short) handling more traffic than ever, something's got to give. Either cut airport slots or fix the staffing crisis, but don't sacrifice rest requirements.

5️⃣ Bruce Willis Aircraft Lawsuit Gets Messy (Million Dollar Drama)

The Scoop: A maintenance dispute involving Bruce Willis's chartered aircraft just went through the fourth appellate court. Saturn Aviation got hit with almost $1 million in damages after a messy case involving drug accusations, duct tape repairs, and lots of Pulp Fiction quotes in the legal documents.

Our Take: When contracts go bad, all your dirty laundry gets aired in court. Half the settlement went to attorneys - they're the real winners here. Lesson: get your maintenance agreements tight and tidy, or you might end up with "Zed's dead" quotes in your legal filings.

🤳 Mile High Madness

This week's wildest aviation content from social media

Preston's Louis Vuitton Dream: After announcing the FlexJet news on Twitter, Preston got the reply of the year from Robert Ricard: "If we get a nice Louis Vuitton lime green painted Gulfstream, now we're talking baby!" Preston's already imagining LV logos painted on a G450. We're thinking metallic silver with matte LVs would be classier, but hey, loud works too.

Jessie's Felix Baumgartner Tribute: Honoring the late Felix Baumgartner, who died in a paragliding accident in Italy over the weekend. She shared his incredible 2016 space jump video - breaking the sound barrier with his body at 843 mph after jumping from the stratosphere. Dude lived on the edge and died doing what he loved.

⚡ Quick Hits

Other stories on our radar

  • Oshkosh Buzz - Preston's reporting live from the show with strong light business jet presence. Pilatus, JetAccess, HondaJet, Daher, and a much-improved Epic booth.

  • eVTOL at Oshkosh - Wisk, Electra Aero, and Beta Technologies trying to convince 80-year-old Bonanza pilots to go electric. Good luck with that.

  • Cirrus Sunglasses - Preston's sporting some ridiculous 80s-style Cirrus promotional sunglasses. The brand knows how to be loud.

🎧 This Week's Episode

Missed the podcast? Catch up on the full episode at the links

✈️ The Final Approach

From billion-dollar investments to 100-day aircraft challenges, this industry never fails to surprise us. Preston's living it up at Oshkosh while Jessie's already planning next year's trip (sponsors welcome for live booth tapings!). Keep those tips coming - especially if you spot any lime green Gulfstreams.

Next Week: Post-Oshkosh wrap-up and whatever other aviation drama unfolds. In this business, there's always something brewing.

The VIP Seat Weekly is the companion newsletter to The VIP Seat podcast. We give you the business aviation hot takes for your commute.

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