College student wins Flexjet $100,000 Gulfstream design contest

An aviation business student at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University is the winner of Flexjet’s Project LXi – Design the Ultimate Private Jet Interior Contest.

Woojae Sohn worked with his father, Youngmin Sohn, on the design titled Carolina, drawing inspiration from their family vacations in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.

The interior will be installed in one of Flexjet’s Gulfstream G650 aircraft and will become one of Flexjet’s LXi Cabin Collection of custom interiors.

Sohn will receive $100,000 as the winner.

There were more than 150 entries in the contest that launched in October 2024.

Those entries were narrowed down by a committee of Flexjet executives to a dozen semi-finalists.

Flexjet’s engineers and designers took the six designs with the highest votes and created more precise visual renderings of them with the private jet company’s software.

They then sourced the materials needed to create the designs, which assisted Flexjet Chairman Kenn Ricci in selecting the winner.

Ricci called Sohn at his home in Florida earlier this week with the news.

The younger Sohn told Ricci, “This contest created a stronger bond between me and my father.”

Ricci said he enjoyed the outline of trees that represented memories of family vacations.

The Flexjet boss added that he liked the tufting proposed for the couch and ottoman.

He noted the wood grain of the table to be something he had never seen before in an aircraft interior.

Ricci said, “It’s a very elegant design.”

A formal award presentation is planned, and the Sohns will be invited to tour Flexjet’s Global Headquarters.

The Gulfstream G650, featuring Sohn’s design, is expected to enter the fleet in 2026.

Last week, Flexjet unveiled its latest custom interior in partnership with Riva.