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Microlease Aerobatics

Microlease plc, the leading test equipment rental company, have been a Firebird sponsor-partner since 1988. Their initial objective was simple: to make Microlease stand out as a bold and innovative company, and especially to catch the attention of people in the electronics industry.

The first year was a ‘testing of the water’ on both sides, and the Microlease colours were carried on a single-seat Pitts S1-T flown by Firebird’s Brian Lecomber. In that year the Microlease Pitts reached an audience of some 2 million, gained extensive coverage in the electronic trade media, and capped off the season by displaying at the Farnborough Air Show in front of a constantly-packed Microlease hospitality chalet.

In the light of this success the S1-T was replaced by the latest and most powerful of the Pitts Special range, the 260hp two-seat S2-B. The second seat added a new dimension to the promotion – the ability to take Microlease customers for the flight of a lifetime.

This corporate hospitality was an immediate success and has continued to grow in popularity ever since. The added value lies in the fact that it is unique: any company can take guests on conventional incentive days – but only Microlease can invite you to take the most exclusive flight of a lifetime. And also try flying it yourself….

In 1996 the Pitts was joined by the best of the new generation of aerobatic machines, the Extra 300L. The German-built two-seat Microlease Extra was the first 300L in the UK, and both the display and guest-flying programmes moved into even higher gear.

All told, Microlease aircraft have now flown well over 500 displays and have carried more than 1,500 corporate guests – 400 of them in 1999, which was the busiest-ever season.

"We wanted something which would make us different, and which was totally dynamic", says Paul Rennie, Microlease CEO, "and that, precisely, is what we’ve got".

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