Aircraft registry prospects finally looking up

Friday 02 May 2014

Five months after Guernsey’s aircraft registry first took off, a Jersey minister has tabled the legislation that could get Jersey’s version off the ground.

Economic Development Minister Alan Maclean has published the Aircraft Registration (Jersey) Law 201- to set up a registry that reports say could generate up to £30 million.

The registry would allow aircraft, aircraft engines and aircraft mortgages to be registered here, and would give Jersey the registration prefix “ZJ-“.

Although Jersey is some way behind Guernsey in setting up a registry – the islands were working together until August last year, when Guernsey elected to fly solo with their own “Channel Islands Aircraft Registry” – the Assistant Economic Development Minister James Baker says that Jersey could still make a go of it.

He said: “As a stable, highly respected international finance centre with world-class legal and fiduciary expertise, Jersey would be a very attractive base for an aircraft registry. Reports have shown that there is a great deal of potential income to be generated in this area. With our established culture of exceptional client service and professionalism, Jersey could expect to establish a high-quality client base through its aircraft registry.”