Mr Greatbatch's difficulties in finding space for clients is the result of many corporate jets flying out of Asia during the region's financial crisis.

The number of planes currently available for charter is one-sixth of what it was before 1997, he says, because so many owners sold their planes. Even now, the migration back is uneven. Mark D Turner, managing director of Hong Kong-based charter operator Metrojet, says 84% to 90% of his business comes from US executives, based both in the US and in Asia. Other charter firms and business-jet terminals report a similar preponderance of customers from the US or, to a lesser extent, Europe. Metrojet currently operates a single plane, a Hawker 700 that can fly eight people as far as Tokyo non-stop. But last week Metrojet signed a preliminary agreement with Gulfstream Aerospace at the Zhuhai Airshow in China to lease a Gulfstream IV, which has more than twice the range and seating capacity of the Hawker. Gulfstream is bearing part of the financial risk of the venture on the notion that making it easier for potential customers to try flying in one of its celebrated jets will make them more likely to buy one. Metrojetalso is keen to spur business-jet sales because the company would like to shift to managing and operating aircraft for other owners, Mr Turner says. But to date, Metrojet's Hawker is the only business jet in Hong Kong. Mr Turner, who is organising the Asian Business Aviation Association, believes sales have been held up because no wealthy Hong Konger wants to stand out as the only person with his own jet. That could be set to change.

Citic Hong Kong Holdings is buying a Global Express jet from Gulfstream rival Bombardier Aerospace and has hired Florida-based Jet Aviation to manage the plane for Citic chief Larry Yung and to charter customers. John KH Li, chief executive of Hong Kong Business Aviation Centre, expects more Chinese companies to follow Citic's lead and buy corporate jets to get executives and customers around without depending on airline schedules.

"Time is money: sooner or later they will realise that," he said. So far, just one Chinese company, Changsha-based Broad Air Conditioning, has its own corporate jets within China. The Hong Kong terminal, the first of the three business-jet centres to open, is the busiest. It handled a record 137 flights last month. More typically, it has been handling about 90 flights a month. Beijing Airport Aviation Service, which opened in April, has been handling about 33 flights a month, while Air Luxor Macau, which opened in July, has been handling about 11 flights a month. Charteroperators linked to the centres in Beijing and Macau have been expanding their fleets as well. Macau's Jet Asia added a second Bombardier Challenger 601 in January because owner Stanley Ho was using the first plane more than 500 hours a year himself. Beijing-based Deer Jet will take delivery of its third Hawker 800XP next month and the company's general manager, Tu Zhizheng, says three more will come next year. Revenue is up 40% this year, he said, after Deer Jet introduced a 50% discount for buyers of lOO-hour blocks of flight time.

Captain Ronald A Pettit, aviation manager for Jet Asia, said the biggest obstacle to increasing business-jet use is government regulations written for airlines rather than corporate jets. To fly into China, for example, a business-jet operator is formally required to apply 15 days in advance for permission; to fly into Tokyo, an operator has to request a landing slot by the 15th of the previous month. Fees to operate in North Asian airports often are triple the cost of those in Southeast Asia, Mr Pettit said. As a result "the market for Asian businessmen (flying corporate jets) is not even in its infancy yet," he said.