11. Which performance metrics would let us compare reliability honestly?

Put this to: Doug Gollan and Marcela White, with the buyer’s procurement analyst.

Why it matters: demand a definition and denominator before accepting a performance percentage. NBAA’s May 2024 podcast specifically examined the publication of charter key performance indicators and the potential value of greater transparency. It is useful background, not evidence of any provider’s present performance. (nbaa.org)

Question: “Which service metrics would you disclose to a sophisticated buyer, and what exclusions would materially change their interpretation?”

A good answer should cover proposed definitions for:

• Accepted versus completed missions, including how cancellations are classified.
• Arrival performance against the buyer’s required arrival time, not only aircraft departure.
• Recovery time after disruption, with the starting event clearly defined.
• Replacement-aircraft and operating-carrier changes.
• Additional buyer expenditure caused by disruption.
• Owned, managed and externally sourced aircraft, where those distinctions affect the reported sample.

Follow-up: “Can we reconcile a sample of the reported results to redacted trip records? Are difficult missions or supplier cancellations excluded?”

Proposed buyer scorecard: compare the same period and broadly comparable mission types. Report missing data as missing; do not turn an unavailable denominator into a zero-failure claim.

Evidence to request: a metric dictionary, reporting period, sample coverage and an explanation of verification. Ask for operational lessons from a poor outcome, not only favourable averages.

Expert quote: [Pending interview, attribution and approval.]