The Big Game in Two Weeks

Posted on by rbaliatico

big game The Big Game in two weeks is all set. What a great and not so great weekend of football. I can’t believe the meltdown San Francisco had at the QB position. Honestly, being a NY Giant and Miami fan I have become use to lackluster play at that position, but to watch San Fran’s QB not play due to what seemed to be a non existing elbow issue was a bit much. Then to see Patrick Mahomes limp and wince in pain all game and then make a final big run in the closing minutes to set his team up to win on that last field goal drove home who really wanted to win. Well its all ready to be an epic game in Glendale, Arizona on February 12th, and the flight request are coming in. They will be hard to find, but if you want to go bad enough, and there is a private jet flight out there for you, we will secure it. I also thought this week might be a good time to take a look at the venue and local vibe for those lucky enough to go to the big game in Arizona. 

The Stadium for The Big Game 

                                                                big game

This years event is at  the State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona which is the home of the Arizona Cardinals and the annual Fiesta Bowl. The stadium design includes the first of its kind retractable natural grass playing surface in North America and the first completely retractable roof operating at an incline. The stadiums shimmering metal panels reflect the shifting desert light while 21 vertical glass-walled slots incorporate into the building exterior offering the fans inside an outstanding view of the desert horizon.  A total of 63,400 fans get unobstructed views of the playing field and they can increase that capacity to 73,000 for events like this. The stadium has already hosted two super bowls and two NCAA Football Championship games in its plus 1.7 million square feet of space. The physical address is 1 Cardinals Way, Glendale, Arizona.

Accommodations for The Big Game

big game

Most likely the better hotels and spas are sold out or they will be at a premium, but let’s mention a few here that deserve noting. The Omni Scottsdale Resort and Spa at Montelucia is nestled at the base of Camelback mountain in nearby Scottsdale, Arizona. It is a Spanish-inspired luxury resort that feels like a beautiful Andalusian Village with floral walkways, peaceful fountains, and arching entryways. There is an award winning spa called Joya plus three sparkling pools with 23 cabanas, and six nice restaurants to enjoy after the game. The Phoenician, also in Scottsdale is architecturally a stunner, lavishly decorated with an amazing art collection, and a 27 hole championship golf course. Each room has its own private balcony or a patio and bedding of imported Italian linens. The Fairmont Scottsdale Princess rounds out my list of Five Star Accommodations for the big game. This is our AAA Five Diamond resort pick that reinvigorates desert escapism with amazing amenities like six pools, a splash pad, water slides, hot tubs, and even sand beaches. It also boast five onsite restaurants to pick from and two world class spas.

Flying In Via Private Air Charter –

Flying into Glendale Municipal (KGEU) will place you just 5 miles west of downtown Glendale. Scenic mountains to the south provide the backdrop for aircraft arrivals and departures. They have a beautifully designed two-story, a 22,000 square-foot terminal and a FAA controlled tower, and complete airport service for general aviation and private jet traffic.

Things To Do Nearby –

Westgate Entertainment District, 6770 N Sunset Blvd, Glendale, AZ. Sprawling shopping complex with restaurants and live music on weekends. Usually jammed packed with football fans during this weekend. There’s a great number of restaurants from national chains to fine dining here. Sahuaro Ranch Park, 9802 North 59th Ave, Glendale, AZ. Wander through the many historic buildings, gardens, orchards, and groves with peacocks and all types of other birds. Historic Downtown District Glendale. Many shops and restaurants plus a great place to seek out antiques. And finally, golfing, golfing, and more golfing. There are way too many courses to list here, one better than the next, but let’s at least mention The Legend at Arrowhead, if not for anything else than the pure vistas and nearby mountain ranges. It’s an award winning Arnold Palmer-designed championship course. There is delicious dining after a quick 9 or an all out 18 hole day with an array of amenities and superb services. It is located at 21027 N 67th Ave, Glendale, AZ.

Private Air Charter and Emptyleg Flights to the Big Game

We hope to hear from anyone that might still not have their respective private air charter set up for the event or are now going last minute. We will say the pickings are thin but not impossible. Have a great week and remember to Be Social, Fly Private!

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Private Jet Event Travel in Q1 2023

Posted on by rbaliatico

event travel Private Jet Event Travel in Q1 2023 is a very busy time. We have been digging up deals for NFL playoff games around the nation. It has actually been so busy this year that we delayed this blog post by a week due to the volume of calls, text, and email inquiries for flights. Finally, we had the chance to catch our breath and put together this nice 1st Quarter 2023 Events calendar of interest to the air charter community. Hope you have the the opportunity to enjoy some of these as they kick-off their annual events.

January 2023

The NFL playoffs are running strong and the final weekend of playoff games is this upcoming Sunday, January 29th. People will be flocking to Kansas City, Missouri and Arrowhead Stadium for the AFC conference playoff game between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Kansas City Chiefs. Our preferred private air charter airport is the Charles B. Wheeler downtown airport (KMKC) which is located four miles from downtown Kansas City. Its a very busy airport with over 67,000 aircraft operations annually. The NFC conference game will be held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at the Lincoln Financial Field Stadium with the San Francisco 49ers stepping onto the green against the tough to beat this year Eagles. It should be a great weekend of football, and we are already deep into sourcing flights to these games for our clients.

X-Games in Aspen, Colorado will be running from January 27th thru January 29th. The Buttermilk Ski Resort in Aspen, Colorado event is the biggest snow sport event of the year and its even free to attend. There’s a great lineup for music this year with free performances from acts like Kaskade, Yung Gravy, Night Tales, MOD SUN, and MADDS. Aspen is amazing in January so this is a great event to add to your private air charter plans.

Sundance Film Festival spans from January 19th through the 29th in Park City/Salt Lake City, Utah. If you are a film buff or a celebrity sighting fanatic, this is the event for you. You can visit the website for tickets and information. The best overall ticket is the Festival Package: In-Person where you get tickets to screenings, in-person premiers, early access to ticket selections, and all online Explorer Pass benefits including Short Film and Indie Episodic programs. Our favorite private air charter airport is Heber Valley Airport (KHCR) which isn’t too big, but very accommodating. There are many Five Star resorts to choose from like the Stein Eriksen Lodge Deer Valley and the St. Regis in Deer Valley.

February 2023

For us the month of February starts just before Valentine’s Day Travel with the Super Bowl. Which teams will contend at this annual monster of an event in Glendale, Arizona at the State Farm Stadium is soon to be determined. My personal wish is to see the 49ers vs the Chiefs, but that’s my heart speaking not my brain. With injuries and talent levels, it looks like a lock for Bengals vs the Eagles at this point. Regardless of the competitors, what better place is there to see a Super Bowl than Arizona in February. This is the time to go large or don’t go at all. Midsized and Heavy Jets dominate the empty leg requests we receive with big time ballers looking to have a good time. Flying into Glendale Municipal (KGEU) will place you just 5 miles west of downtown Glendale. Scenic mountains to the south provide the backdrop for aircraft arrivals and departures. They have a beautifully designed two-story, a 22,000 square-foot terminal and a FAA controlled tower, and complete airport service for general aviation and private jet traffic.  With so many great resorts and golfing nearby, this year’s Super Bowl is a bucket list event at a bucket list location.

If football isn’t your sport, start the Month of February with a trip to our neighbors of the north, Canada. February 3rd to the 12th is time for the Quebec Winter Carnival and is another fantastic trip. It’s really one of the best Winter Festivals in the World. It is also very cold, so you need to bundle up before seeing all the parades, the ice sculptures and music shows. We do a lot of Miami to Quebec flights annually and it is a growing destination for our south florida based clients, especially those that call Miami Beach home. We have great operators flying all through Canada with some very attractively priced emptylegs from Florida to Canada’s biggest cities. Many Canucks escape the cold via private air charter creating emptylegs seeking to return to Canada at discounted prices. The Quebec Winter Festival is a great excuse to take advantage of these heavily discounted flights. 

From the coldest winter carnival to the warmest, the Rio Carnival in Brazil is possibly the world’s most famous festival. Starting February 17th and running through February 25th, the Rio Carnival attracts millions of people from around the globe. The streets of Rio de Janeiro are flooded for five sleepless days, colorful parades, costumes and over-the-top parties making it the greatest show on earth. Granted there can be safety concerns as with any event this size, so we do recommend planning this trip wisely. Most of our clients do have their own safety protocols in place for such events, and it makes sense for this one. 

Of course since we are a Miami based company we can’t forget the World’s Largest Boat and Yacht Show February 15th through the 19th in Miami. The Miami International Boat Show will have over 1000 boats and yachts on display from South Beach to Edgewater and everywhere in-between. There are numerous coinciding VIP events, luxury dining and hotel accommodations, and a night life like nowhere else in the world. This is our hometown event, so let us get you here in style for this International event.

Finally, if you can’t get to Rio for Carnival, Mardi Gras in New Orleans is happy to take its place on your list. Starting back in January, Mardi Gras is a long festival with many parades and activities leading up to its end on February 17th, Fat Tuesday. With fabulous dining, cultural history, and so many things to do, New Orleans is a great place to visit in your chartered Hawker 900xp with friends and family. 

March 2023

Sports fans love March because its NCAA Men’s Division 1 basketball tournament time, March Madness starting in Dayton, Ohio with West Regionals in Vegas, Southern Regionals in Louisville, Eastern Regionals at Madison Square Garden in NYC, and Midwest Regionals in Kansas City. Culminating with the Final Four in Houston, Texas, this is a very busy month for private air charter. College Basketball doesn’t get any crazier than this annual tournament, and the games are amazing to see in person. Even if you don’t love basketball, most people enjoy following this tournament. We can handle your private air travel needs to see your favorite college games.

March is a beautiful month to jet around the US as we move from winter to spring. What better way to celebrate than at the National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C. that starts March 25th. This is a four week-long cultural festival held across the city. Starting with the Opening Ceremony on the 25th, many of the events run well into April. Late March is a good time to start the visit at the beginning of the bloom, and as always D.C. is a great place to visit.

Tennis Anyone? Starting March 20th is the Miami Open for all you tennis fans. No this isn’t a Pickleball Tournament, this is great tennis with the biggest stars of the world tennis stage visiting us for some great action. I remember attending when it was called the Sony Ericksson Open back in the day, but it has grown exponentially since then moving from Key Biscayne, Florida to Miami Gardens at the Hard Rock Stadium. The Miami Open boasts thirty courts and two weeks of tournament action. Easy fly-in at Opa Locka (KOPF) makes this event a favorite of the jet set crowd. 

Finally, and very close to home is another annual must attend event, The Ultra Music Festival at Bayfront Park starts Friday March 24th and runs through Sunday March 26th. It’s Loud, it’s Huge, and the whole city seems to hop to the weekend long beat that pounds our balcony and makes us want to dance. The list of talent is endless and way too long to list here. Just visit their website for info on the lineup and visit our website to book your private jet travel to get here.  

Private Jet Air Charter

We enjoy the opportunity to share these events with our readers, followers, and clients. Sharing some ideas with you with these quarterly event sneak peeks and are happy to help you hunt for great deals to make them a part of your reality. We can help secure both roundtrip and one-way charters at heavily discounted prices when available or as always provide you with a very competitive price with our team at your side along the way. 

Until next week’s post, Be Social. Fly Private!  

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Doing Leg Work is Exhausting

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leg work, exhausting                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Doing leg-work is exhausting. No, not the kind at the local gym, the leg work we do searching our databases, sending emails, and calling with our operators. It’s what we do to find the perfect air charter or emptyleg flight for our clients. We have touched on many aspects of the private air charter business in our previous blog post articles from buying your own jet to reviews of the most popular categories, models, and hourly charter rates. We also detailed how, if your private air travel needs are below 50 hours per year, private air charter is a better option than fractional ownership. As we look at the weekly, yes weekly, changes to jet charter company membership deals and jet card offers, we find that they really aren’t as much of a cost savings as they are time savers. We know time is money so we can see why, even if they are often not the lowest priced way to fly privately, they can be the most efficient, especially with the larger more reputable firms. While we are an excellent alternate option, we do not market our services as a brokerage firm. We prefer to act as the bona fide agent for our clients seeking private air charter at attractive prices. The definition of the term “bona fide” identifies with us as “sincerely, without intention to deceive”. We charge a modest commission to the operator for helping them move aircraft that they would normally fly without passengers, that is an emptyleg.  Unfulfilled, non-revenue emptylegs are flights the operator would otherwise absorb as a cost or pass that cost on to the customer flying a revenue leg. Finding customers for emptylegs isn’t an easy task because it is a very competitive business and the amount of work needed to find the perfect solution for a client can take days, weeks, and even months to put together. A bona fide agent like us really has to love what they are doing because sometimes our very hard efforts are rewarded with “that’s too expensive” or “I booked something else,” leaving us unpaid for our efforts. Fortunately, loyal clientele builds quickly if you get a reputation for making things happen and offering great value for client’s flights needs.  Let’s take a peek into the process and why we can be such an asset to anyone that flies private.

Operators

Air charter operators are a very diverse group. Some operators are so busy that you can consider yourself lucky to get a call back or reply to an air charter request. They can’t be blamed for this because their flight departments are usually very complex with limited staff who can’t waste time providing quotes to every broker looking for a flight for a client that thinks it will cost just a little more than flying First Class. Of course we know a First Class ticket is nowhere near the price of a private jet charter. Even if you go with an operator that offers flights by the seat, they are considerably higher than a First Class ticket. Only if the flight is a normalized route like NY to Miami that they are trying to fill daily, will these flights get in the range of a First Class ticket. So when a broker or a company like ours reaches out, it’s your reputation for having the clientele that gets the return call. We maintain extensive databases of all our operators. We know where they fly, what they fly, and how often. We know their strengths and weaknesses. Calling a California based operator for that Miami to NY request will not be prudent, as many operators have a preference for their routes. Yes, some fly anywhere and everywhere, but that’s a smaller group, and tend to be more expensive at quote time. You have to have a game plan to match the client to the operator. Many brokers pay large monthly membership fees to companies that organize this data for them, but like with anything else, you get what you pay for. I find that these services tend to give preference to the operator that pays for the “enhanced” listing, so when you search they come up first regardless of if that flight is in their wheelhouse. We prefer to work our own database of operators. They don’t have to sign any agreement with us or give us exclusive pricing. Each flight stands on its own merit. If we can find an operator motivated to move a jet or even a turbo prop in the path our client needs to fly, the good pricing speaks for itself. This doesn’t happen overnight as these relationships are nurtured over time and it’s a never ending process. However, it does take a lot of leg work, something we are happy to do on behalf of our consistent clients. Now lets take a look at this private flyer.

Private Flyers

There is a saying in the business, “Jet Money”, and I hate this terminology. It basically means that only certain people have the type of money to fly private. Anyone with need and desire can figure a way to fly private. I remember the first time I took a call from a very nice gentleman who was looking for regular flights from the west coast of Florida to Texas for medical treatments.  He didn’t need ambulatory flights, he just hated flying commercial. The client was wheelchair bound and had to be lifted from the chair into the First Class seat he would purchase on the commercial plane. He explained to me it could be a great experience, but more often it was humiliating and done with no concern for his dignity. I fully understood, and knew that even though he had the financial means to pay for the private flight, we would have to find the right plane, and more importantly, the right crew. It took time, and a little trial and error, but we finally found the nice client an operator that was happy to accommodate his needs. I wouldn’t define this person as having “Jet Money” as much as I would call him a human being needing our help.

Since Covid-19 flying private will never be the same nor will flying commercial, it was a game changer for both areas of the industry. It has created a new category of private fliers that will find a way to fly private just to not have deal with the commercial airlines. The heavy layoffs and early retirements set back the commercial industry in a way no one could have expected. Although crew shortages are a problem, the prevailing problem I see is that some airlines failed to invest in the operations IT. Some systems are personnel intensive when it comes to scheduling and tracking crew, luggage, resources, maintenance, and the like. They have not automated enough to adequately deal with delays or weather issues. This is why the commercial airline systems keep collapsing. Just this past holiday Southwest airlines imploded mainly due to antiquated IT software with little or no AI. The airlines need to focus on operations personnel and systems. Just ask yourself, why are they still printing tickets, or why don’t they have iPhone like air tags for luggage. With all the technology available, it has to do with upper management focused solely on profitability and shareholders coupled with a lack of willingness to invest in systems.

The point is you don’t have to be a millionaire to fly private. There are great deals out there if you have someone in your court like us looking for them on a regular basis. There are times when it’s a no brainer to hop on an empty and other times where it makes perfect sense to fly commercial. 

We are only scratching the surface of what we do and how we fit within the air charter market in this article. We are willing to do the leg work that you as our client shouldn’t have to do. When we’re looking for a flight for a client, we often say to each other, how in the world would our client have found this solution on their own or through a flight membership program. The answer is they wouldn’t. Often the specific flight doesn’t exist, but by seeing all the pieces we can help figure out the right pieces to the puzzle and create that flight. It takes the right team to put these together and that’s what makes us special. Next week we will take a peak at the upcoming hot travel for Q1 and especially for the big sporting events, holiday fun, and the Miami International Boat Show. 

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Private Jet to Bizliner, Mom Must be Proud

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bizliner                                                                                                                                                                                                                          There’s a point where only the biggest will do, and going from that Gulfstream G5 to the Bizliner category of private jets, your mom must be really proud. Typical Bizliner customers include Heads of State, royalty, celebrities, top executives, Fortune 100 companies, and the like. These mega jets occupy the same ground space as many large-cabin business jets, but the the Boeing Business Jet 737Max, the Global 7500, and the Airbus ACJ319 take private air travel to another world. Many of these wide body behemoths have full bedrooms, seating for the entire executive staff, and the comfort of the most luxurious hotels. They are ideal for people who need to maximize their time and control their environment to their personal exacting standards. We will look first at the Jet that originated the Bizliner terminology, the BBJ, Boeing Business Jet.

 

#1 Bizliner the BBJ Boeing Business Jet 737 Max

 

jets

Mac Daddy #1 of the bizliner gang is the BBJ Boeing Business Jet. These versions of Boeing’s popular commercial jets are modified to suit the whims and fancies of ‘its good to be king’ owners. Heads of state, countries, internet moguls, and Hollywood’s box office dynamos take a 737 MAX, 777, 777x, 787 or the 747-8 and turn them into 41,000 ft high altitude hotels or corporate boardrooms. The BBJ 737 Max can fly to a range of 6000 nautical miles with the highest possible take-off weights. The 737 Max have integrated airstairs to allow independent operations at remote airfields. They have auxiliary fuel tanks in the cargo compartments to achieve those aforementioned ranges. They also have a unique low cabin altitude system that will maintain a maximum cabin altitude of 6,500 feet even when flying near 41,000 ft which vastly improves passenger comfort. The BBJ Max boasts a reasonably low operating cost drawing on its commercial  aircraft roots so it can cost significantly less than purpose-built business jets. They get this ability from LUMP, a strangely named system which stands for low utilization maintenance program, which stretches out the maintenance intervals for a BBJ operator making major checks every 4 years and heavier checkouts every 12 years. The 787 Dreamliner version of the BBJ is a longer range aircraft capable of 9,960 nm with 25 passengers. The recently introduced 777X casts a wider net with a range of 11,835 nm. To compare the cabin areas of these aircraft, the cabin area of the 737 MAX is from 884 to 1,120 sq ft, the 787 is from 2,340 to 2,688 sq ft, and the 777X is from 3,256 to 3,689 sq ft. There are many older BBJ and BBJ1s available for charter that were based on the 737-700 and 737-800. Initially these business jets were operated by many Fortune 100 companies, but after the 2008 financial systems meltdown many are now registered to hide the owners identities and obscure their movement. The 737 MAXs are powered by CFM International LEAP (Leading Edge Aviation Propulsion) high-bypass turbofan engines. The 787s are powered by either GE Electric GEnx dual rotor/axial flow turbofans or Rolls-Royce Trent 1000s. Finally, the 777Xs will get their power from the General Electric GE9X developed by General Electric exclusively for the Boeing 777X. They have a larger fan and advanced materials like ceramic matrix composites (CCMCs), and higher bypass compression ratios giving them improved fuel efficiency. To charter a BBJ 737 MAX you will pay around $12,000* USD per hour and up based on model and year.

 

#2 Bombardier Global 7500

global 7500The Global 7500 is an industry flagship.  It has a long range near 7,700 nm and a max speed of Mach 0.925 with 19 passengers. The ride is ultra smooth achieved via the Smooth Flex Wing technology that was engineered to give maximum control and agility at all speeds. The cabin space is gigantic and it can be designed to have four true living spaces with an available Master suite as well as a dedicated crew suite and kitchen. The cabin air is filtered by Bombardier’s Pur Air HEPA filtration system capturing 99.99% of allergens, bacteria, and viruses. Large and evenly spaced windows give the cabin more natural light than any other cabin in business aviation. The Soleil lighting system is aviation’s first circadian rhythm-based cabin lighting designed to combat jet lag. In the cockpit, the 7500 features advanced fly-by-wire technology and a permanent side-facing jump seat. It is powered by GE Passport Engines designed specifically for the Global 7500. The 7500 is happiest playing in the troposphere with an initial cruise altitude of 43,000 ft and a max operating altitude of 51,000 ft.  The interior cabin volume is 2,786 cu ft with a height of 6.2 ft and interior width of 8 feet. To charter a Global 7500 you will start around $15,900* USD per hour to as high as $20,000*USD per hour.

 

#3 Airbus ACJ319

acj319

The ACJ319 is the corporate version of the Airbus A319.  It has removable extra fuel tanks which are installed in the cargo department giving it a range of 6,000 nautical miles and a service ceiling of 39,000 ft.  The ACJ319 can be configured for 19 to 50 passengers. The power comes from either CFM International CFM56 high-bypass turbofans or the IAE V2500, a two-shaft high-bypass turbofan built by International Aero Engines.  The aircraft is very popular with heads of state due to the flexibility of the cabin thanks to a number of partitions enabling it to provide up to 6 separate zones. The zones can accommodate up to 19 passengers and can contain bedrooms, dining areas, and lounges. The other ACJ series jets offered as Bizliners are the 320, 321, and the ACJ319neo/ACJ320neo. The ACJ319neo may carry 8 passengers while the ACJ320neo is built to carry up to 25 passengers. They will have CFM LEAP or Pratt & Whitney PW1000Gs lower fuel-burn engines providing additional range along with lower engine noise and a comfortable cabin altitude not exceeding 6,400 ft. There are also the bigger models like the 340, 350, and the 380. The most recent market entrant is the ACJ TwoTwenty a variant of the A220-100. It has a range of 5,650 nm and a cabin space of 790 sq ft. The ACJ319 has a cabin volume of 5,843 cu ft with an overall cabin width of 12’1″ and a cabin height of 7’4″. To charter an Airbus ACJ319 you can expect to spend in the neighborhood of $18,600* USD per hour.

We are not shy about the expression “if you have to ask you can’t afford it” so to give you an idea of the purchase price of these jets in the “previously enjoyed” preowned market, the ACJ319neo will sell for around $100 million dollars. Just as with mega homes and yachts, a new owner will likely want to gut the interior in order to install their personal design touches. Luckily, you don’t have to own one to experience the joy of riding in one and we’d love to help you achieve that exact wish. This lineup of our three favorite Bizliners certainly excites us and is the perfect fodder for our holiday dreams. We will be enjoying the holidays with family and friends so our next blog post about air charter topics will be January 2nd, 2023.

Until Then, Be Social, Fly Private!  Sign Up Today!  Follow us on Facebook  Follow us on Instagram

 

*These are base hourly rates per craft type with no ferry times, FET taxes, taxi time, or fuel surcharges. Typical final hourly rates will be higher based on category and timing.

 

The Top Three Heavy Jets to Charter

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heavy jets

Heavier is Better

As we move into the Big Beast of Private Jet Travel, we decided to list the Top Three Heavy Jets to Charter. These are the aircraft most requested to accomplish the longer range trips while stepping up your overall game. They are big in comfort, long in range, and full of creature comforts the executive traveler must have in their charter. We will go over a nice list of three here starting with the Gulfstream GIV-SP, then we will look at its fiercest competitor, the Bombardier Challenger 604, and finally the sweetheart Dassault Falcon 2000LX. These aren’t necessarily the newest or greatest but they are the top three dynamos of the Heavy jet charter brigade. Some tail numbers may have their best years behind them, but most still represent great value and excellent charter options without sacrificing luxury and comfort. Many have been refurbished with modern interiors, but there are a few out there that still look like they could use some TLC. So lets take a look at the GIV-SP for your next transcontinental trip.

#1 The Gulfstream GIV-SP

gulfstream

It’s easy to rank the Gulfstream GIV-SP in the Top Three Heavy Jets to Charter. The operational history of the GIV-SP and its military variants add to the cool factor of this aircraft. It is the plane of choice for the Hurricane Hunter selected by NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). Their version was modified to carry scientist up to 45,000 ft ceilings and all around tropical cyclones. They drop instruments called “dropsondes” to measure all the critical data from a building storm such as windspeed, barometric pressure, humidity, and temperatures. The reason the GIV-SP was well suited for this task is because it can fly long distances with ample cabin space for equipment and crew while being tough enough to stand up to the beating the hurricane hunters put them through. The military variant of this aircraft is the the C-20F that the Army utilizes. It can be configured for both cargo and 26 passenger operations or a little bit of both. It is also used by the Navy, Marines, and the U.S. Air Force as command/executive transport roles (flying around the top brass). The GIV-SP is comparable to the Gulfstream III but with an aerodynamic redesign of the wing to lower weight, reducing drag, and increasing overall range. The SP stands for “Special Purpose” and appeared at serial number 1214 in 1993. Two Rolls Royce TAY 611-8 engines provide 13,850 lbs of thrust each. Sixteen passengers can be seated in three separate living areas. We find the more popular layouts to be the 14 passenger cabins or the 10 passenger cabin with 4-club space arrangement forward, a 2-place club and divan in the middle, then another 4-place conference seating in the rear. A full service galley can be located in the forward of aft compartments. Baggage is a roomy 169 cubic feet of space. Over 300 of these were built with production ending in 2002. The interior cabin height is a tall 6′ 1″ and a width of just over 7 feet. Maximum takeoff weight is a heavy 74,600 lbs with a max payload of 5300 lbs. The GIV-SP boasts a 45,000 ft ceiling altitude with an average range of 3,880 nautical miles. You will experience a normal cruise speed of 476 kts with a maximum speed closer to 500 kts. Typically the average hourly charter rate for a Gulfstream GIV-SP runs about $8,500* USD.

#2 Bombardier Challenger 604

challenger 604
By Chris Finney

Introduced in 1995, the Bombardier Challenger 604 is loved by executives and businesses because of its typically lower charter costs than the GIV-SP and other long range business jets. The successor to the CL-601 was one of the first business jets designed with a super-critical wing offering improved range, dependability, reliability, and outstanding performance. The Challenger 604 is a powerful heavy jet. This #2 pick in the category is powered by two General Electric CF34-3B engines that produce 8,729 lbs of thrust each. The plane can attain .74 Mach, but you can expect an economical cruising speed closer to 425 kts. With its fuel distribution and greater fuel capacity, the 604 can reach over 4,000 nautical miles range (NBAA 4Pax IFR Reserves 200 NM Alt).  The cockpits have the Collins Pro Line 4 with six screens, left and right primary displays, multifunction displays and EICAS. The avionics suite is top notch with flight director/autopilot systems, HF-9000 high frequency radios, digital air data computers, turbulence detection radar, and dual Pro Line 400 all-digital interface comm/nav/ident radios. The standup height in the cabin is 6′ 1″ with a roomy 8.2 ft cabin width. Maximum capacity can be a tight 19 passenger layout, but a roomier 10-12 passenger layout is more common. You can expect to see forward club, half club, divan, or  double club layouts. Galleys and Lavatories in the 604s are usually large. The Challenger 604 has a maximum altitude of 41,000 feet with a max take off weight of 48,200 lbs. The baggage space is ample for long trips at 115 cu ft. The average hourly charter rate for the Bombardier Challenger 604 is about $7,500* USD.

 

#3 Dassault Falcon 2000LX

falcon 2000lx

The Dassault Falcon 2000LX is our third top pick for transcontinental Heavy Jets for charter service. It was a development of the 2000EX and 2000EX EASy and entered the market in 2007.  This jet boast having the size and comfort of a large cabin with the efficiency of a light jet. Having similar 4,000 nautical range capability like the GIV-SP and the 604 Challenger, the Falcon 2000LX fills out this special grouping of heavy jets. The impressive addition of winglets set this airframe apart from its predecessors of the 2000 series of Falcons as well as added significant fuel savings and range. In the cockpit, pilots will be behind the Rockwell Collins Pro Line 4 with a fully integrated avionics suite, including the Honeywell EASy avionics panel, Allied GNS-XES flight management system, Collins TWR-850 Doppler weather radar, and a dual channel fully integrated avionics processor system. The power comes from twin Pratt & Whitney Canada PW308C engines making the 2000LX capable of cruising at a fast 482 knots while comfortably carrying 10 passengers. You will find the cabin to be spacious and comfortable. The headroom is a nice and tall 6’2″ while an overall 7’8″ width. Passengers booking the 2000LX can enjoy over 1,000 cubic feet of interior space that gives them nice freedom of movement and legroom. You could seat up to 19 passengers in the cabin with the correct seat configuration, but we find most with seating for eight to ten passengers. The last one I was on had multiple lounge areas, seats that folded down into beds, a forward galley, and full aft lavatory. It had plenty of room for the baggage at 131 cubic feet and a max takeoff weight of 42,800 lbs. The Dassault Falcon 2000LX will usually have a $7,000* USD per hour charter rate.

It’s all about the range and comfort when it comes to these three heavy jets. If you want the best, I’d say take the Gulfstream GIV-SP. Looking to save a few bucks, well the Bombardier Challenger 604 with that updated interior from two years ago will be the obvious choice. Now if you want to impress the people meeting you on the tarmac when you land, few others will look cooler than a Dassault Falcon 2000LX pulling up to the FBO. Next week we go even larger, exploring the corporate behemoths in the Ultra Long-Range Business Jet Category.

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*These are base hourly rates per craft type with no ferry times, FET taxes, taxi time, or fuel surcharges. Typical final hourly rates will be higher based on category and timing.

 

Go Bigger or Don’t Go At All?

Posted on by rbaliatico
go bigger
Go Bigger

Hello my aviation friends and colleagues. This week we look at why our clients are saying Go Bigger or Don’t Go At All. The need for larger aircraft, and more importantly longer range, has kicked up the demand in the Midsized Jet category. We will first take a look at a popular all-time favorite of the air charter crowd, the Cessna Citation Excel. Then the much larger, and growing in popularity, Bombardier Challenger 350. Finishing off the group with my personal favorite, the Hawker 900XP. These are all big and roomy midsized jets just like the Hawker 800XP pictured above, but speed and range really set them apart. We start with a look at the tried and true Cessna Citation Excel. This is the first aircraft that really distinguish this category from its smaller siblings in the light jet category. Often when we quote a price on a requested heavy jet, typically a Gulfstream G4 or larger, new clients react with sticker shock. They quickly retract the original request and replace it with one for something a bit cheaper. The midsized category quickly becomes appealing especially when one of our operators has a midsize with light jet pricing. At that point a match is made and we proceed to secure the flight and mission requirements. It’s necessary to make sure range and room for passengers does not change too dramatically when we drop a category like this. Familiarity with the proposed midsized jet and operator can make the transition smooth and the dollar savings will be significant.

The Cessna Citation Excel – Go Big

citation excel
Cessna Citation Excel 560XL

The Citation Excel is a very suitable Go Big solution, or in some cases a “little less expensive please” substitute. This is the smaller of the midsized jet category offerings but has some very nice features. Born from customer consultations, the Excel is a shortened version of the Citation X Fuselage combined with a modified upswept supercritical wing based on the Citation V Ultra. Powered by twin Pratt and Whitney Canada PW-545A series turbofans. The cockpit has a standard Honeywell Primus 1000, three 8″ x 7″ screens EFIS avionics package consisting of two primary flight displays, one for each pilot, and a multifunction display. The cabin features standup headroom and a dropped aisle that runs the length of the main cabin. There is plenty of elbow room making it much more roomier than those of its light jet siblings. The max cruising speed is 429 knots with a max ceiling of 45,000 ft. The range at economical cruise is about 2,080 nautical miles.  The maximum takeoff weight is just at 20,000 lbs. The normal layout is two crew seats and 8 passenger seats but some have 10 passenger seats in the main cabin. The typical hourly charter rate is around $3,600* USD for this jet.

 

The Bombardier Challenger 350 – Go Bigger

 

 

 

challenger 350

 

                                                                                                    The Bombardier Challenger 350 is a Go Bigger upgrade. This is a true midsized jet that grows daily in popularity. The 350 aircraft’s wings, engines, and landing gears were all developed to ensure a perfectly balanced design, providing smooth take-offs, flights, and landings. Powered by a pair of Honeywell HTF7350 turbofans this Challenger have a cruising speed of 547 knots and a max take-off weight double that of the Cessna at 40,600 lbs. It has a lengthy total range of 3,682 nautical miles with braking improvements and rudder control modifications squeezing out the additional 1,500 nm of range over the Cessna. The cockpit has significant avionics including the combined Collins Aerospace head-up display and enhanced vision system.  It boast one of the largest cabins in this category and enhanced soundproofing maximizes trip enjoyment with its oh-so-quiet cabin. You can enjoy high speed Ka-band and 4G ATG (air to ground) internet to do some work or stream your favorite movies. The seat finishes are world-class with flexible seating up to 10 passengers or less seats in a more Executive Club configuration. There is a large full function galley to enjoy meals on your nicely concealed tables at each executive arrangement. There is 106 cubic feet of unrestricted baggage access and storage, plus a lavatory featuring large backlit mirror, vanity, sink, and faucet. The average charter hourly rate for a Challenger 350 is near $5,500* USD.

The Beechcraft Hawker 900XP – Go Best

hawker 900 xp
By Aktug Ates 

The Hawker series are one of my favorite aircrafts to charter. Actually a 900XP was one of the first private jets I arranged a charter on. We don’t mention who our clients are, but I can say he was an avid golfer and very impressed on his first trip in the Hawker. The key factor was the storage room for all his golf clubs and luggage and the 900XP fit his needs perfectly. The Hawker 900XP is a direct development of the Hawker 850XP.  It improved on many of the 850s best traits like fuel efficiency, aerodynamics, and the overall performance capabilities. It has updated winglets improving the performance, range, and takeoff distances. Powered by twin Honeywell TFE731-50R engines this aircraft has a range of 2,733 nautical miles with fuel under NBAA IFR. It has the same Collins Pro Line avionics suite found in the the 850 including the all important terrain awareness warning systems, weather, reduced vertical separation minimum , and enhanced ground proximity warning system. The cabin is very roomy with LCD lighting, standup headroom, touch-screen seat controls, and plenty of in-cabin storage. The 950XP cruises at 452 knots with a max ceiling of 41,000 ft. The overall maximum takeoff weight is 28,000 lbs. The cabin height is a tall 5’9″ and width of 6 ft. Internal baggage is 50 cu ft with room for up to roughly 7 bags. The seating is typically 2 crew plus 8 passengers. It can be chartered for an hourly rate of $5,000* USD.

Up to this point we looked at three suitable private jet charter entries each in the Very Light, Light, and Mid-Sized Jet Categories. Some can be called old dinosaurs, and some we mention but would avoid chartering based on our data. Its a complex task to pick the right jet, but its more important to make sure it’s a safe jet. Next week we will look at the Heavy Hitters in the Heavy Jet Category.

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*These are base hourly rates per craft type with no ferry times, FET taxes, taxi time, or fuel surcharges. Typical final hourly rates will be higher based on category and timing.

Light Jets and Lear, are they all a thing of the past?

Posted on by rbaliatico
lear
Learjet 31a      Photo: Tomás Del Coro

Light Jets and Lear, are they all a thing of the past? Maybe. We will take a look this week at three light jet options for the private jet charter flyer. We can’t begin to discuss this category without talking about Learjet first. For many of us, our first introduction into the world of private jet charter flights were on a Lear. They were one of the first companies to manufacture a private luxury aircraft. They were fast and sleek in design and the Learjet 23 burst onto the private travel scene in the early 60s. After numerous changes in ownership, Learjet has been a subsidiary of Bombardier Aerospace since the early 90s. They gave it their best shot with the Learjet 60 and the 45, but announced in February of 2021 that they would end production of the newest Learjet 75 and the rest of the lineup. In my opinion it is the result of a trend towards moving to larger craft with better range, more seating, ample luggage storage, and increased fuel capacities. Bombardier sited their intention back in 2021 to focus on its larger Challenger and Global Jets. These larger aircraft better meet the growing expectations of the wealthier private jet traveler. For now Bombardier remains committed to fully support the Learjet fleet well into the future, but we are already hearing some complaints from the fleet of about 2000 Lear’s still in service regarding delays in performing necessary annual inspections and other required services. Let’s take a look at a remaining Learjet in the light Jet category and hope it will continue to be a viable option for the private jet flyers needing a short, economical flight to meet their needs.

 

Learjet 31a – Light Jets

This is the extended range version of the original Learjet 31. It’s a late 90s era, seven passenger light jet. As with most Lears it is very fast, and can cruise at 845km/h or 456 kts. It has a flight altitude in between 45,000 and 47,000 ft. The 31a has two rear-mounted turbofan engines produced by Honeywell. The TFE73131-2s are fitted with a digital electronic engine control system, an engine synchronizer and a Dee Howard thrust reverser. The aircraft has conventional and manual controls, and include Honeywell digital avionics with the five-tube electrical flight instrumentation system. The jet can be flown fully by hand or by using the KFC 3100 flight control system, a dual digital three-axis autopilot. The typical layout includes room for both crew members and four passengers. The cabin is fitted with a club-style divan and four Erda Adjustable seats with folding tables. Cabin width is about 4.9 feet and the height is roughly 4.26′ which is very typical of the sleek fuselage design of the Lear.  It has a maximum range of 1,455 nm. The normal baggage capacity is 1.13 cubic meters and an external baggage locker might be included that increases total capacity to 1.47 cubic meters. You can typically find a Lear 31a at an Hourly rate around $2,900* USD per hour. Its a great small jet for a quick hop or an added leg to a bigger mission.

 

Cessna CJ4

cessna, light jets
By ZLEA – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Cessna CJ4 is a beautiful light jet. The first CJ4 was delivered in 2010 after a rigorous flight-test of 1,000 sorties and more than 1,600 hours in the air since its first flight in 2008. It has a 17,110 lb max take-off weight and is a big light jet with typical passenger seating for 7. It looks good because it has the slick wing geometry from the Citation Sovereign and the big Citation Mustang passenger doors. It has the powerful Williams FJ44-4A engines helping it cruise along at a fast 454 kts.  Flying at 43,000 feet is a quick launch from takeoff and the overall range is 1,667 nautical miles. In the cockpit both pilots enjoy increased legroom in a great ergonomic layout. The avionics are the four-display Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21 with the latest safety enhancements, including electronic charts, graphical weather uplink, terrain avoidance and anti collision systems. In the cabin, passenger can enjoy the Rockwell Collins Venue cabin-management system, switch panels at each seat position, and power outlets for laptops or cell chargers. There is much more legroom for the passengers than you find in the shorter fuselage CJ3s. The floor in the CJ4 is lowered to provide a wider cabin and better viewing out of the windows. And finally in a light jet, the aft lavatory features a left-handed belted potty with a small vanity. The cabin width is 5 ft as is the height. You will find the average charter rates at about $3,100* USD per hour.

 

Phenom 300e 

phenom 300e
By Matti Blume – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

The first time I had a chance to tour and see this beautiful light jet offering from Embraer executive Jets was at the EAA AirVenture back in 2019. It is pretty much the best-selling light jet in the world and deservingly so. This jet is FAST, capable of speeds up to Mach 0.80 with a ridiculously quiet cabin space. It has a notable safety feature found only in this business aircraft: the runway overrun awareness and alerting system (ROAAS), which provides a warning if the runway approach is too steep or too fast. The jet is a twin-engine cantilever monoplane with low-positioned, swept wings. It has two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW535E turbofan engines. The NBAA 4 PAX IFR Range is 1,971 NM with a flight altitude of 45,000 ft. The maximum cruise speed is 453 kts with a max take off weight of 18,387 lbs. The enclosed cabin has room for 9 passengers and a two-pilot crew. The aircraft is installed with advanced Prodigy Touch flight deck based on the Garmin 3000 avionics suite. The flight deck features three 14.1″ interchangeable displays with soft keys. The cabin is typically found in the six passenger standard configuration with seating that has an extendable comfy headrest along with bolsters, retractable armrest, broad seatbacks, and extendable leg rests. The cabin is also installed with HD by Lufthansa Technik, a state-of-the-art cabin control system which supports the integration of portable devices and enables wireless audio and video streaming. The cabin width is 5′ 1″ and the height is 4′ 11″. To charter the fast Phenom 300e you will pay about $3,350* USD per hour.

Referencing the light jet private travel category – “With each passing decade the needs changed, Mark Masluch, Bombardier’s director of communications, told the Robb Report  in an April 21st, 2022  article. “First it was city-to-city, then it became coast-to-coast, then trans-Atlantic, then trans-Pacific. People used to enter the market with a light jet and work their way up, but now, with the range needs and the amount of wealth creation, they go right to a mid-size or even a $60 million global jet.” Light jets are far less profitable than their bigger siblings in the mid to heavy jet categories putting additional pressure on the production of future light jets. Next week we look at three reasons in the mid-sized jet category making our customers say “go big or stay home. “

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*These are base hourly rates per craft type with no ferry times, FET taxes, taxi time, or fuel surcharges. Typical final hourly rates will be higher based on category and timing.

 

 

 

 

 

Size matters when its a Private Jet Charter

Posted on by rbaliatico

size matters                                                                                                                                                    Size matters when its a private jet charter. Luckily there are a lot of jet sizes to choose from when it comes to selecting your charter. They start in the category of very light jet all the way to a Boeing Business Jet that is the size of a commercial airliner. Today we will take a look at the entry level of the 4 categories in the air charter world, the very light jets.  Since there are many in this category, we will discuss 3 of the hotter very light jets. It really comes down to what the mission is and how many people will be aboard. It also can have a lot to do with who will be flying. Sometimes the CEO will need his or her own space away from the travel group, and then only certain jets will do. Or the trip is for a large group and the seating capacity will be the main priority. Cargo space may be a deciding factor for a golfing weekend or a fashionista with an entourage of luggage. There are also various cruise speeds and the range flown without a fuel stop to consider. All in all, the process of choosing the right jet for a charter can be simple or at times very complex, especially on a multi-leg tour. Let’s look at the Very Lights this week.

Very Light Jets – Size Matters

 

very light jet
By Kentaro Iemoto – Cirrus Vision SF50(N280CJ), CC BY-SA 2.0

The Cirrus Visionjet has a capacity of 7 passengers including crew with a max operating altitude of 31,000 ft. Its max cruising speed is 305 knots true airspeed (ktas) with a max takeoff weight of 6,000 lbs and 1400 lb payload. The plane has a max range of 1,275 nautical miles (NM) with an average flight range of 950NM. The jet has some very interesting features like its “Safe Return” autonomous feature, where the plane could fly itself if for some reason the pilot became incapacitated during the flight. It would be able to fly at the correct altitude, maintain the proper speed, and even land itself all at the touch of a button. The plane has an iconic V-tail design and is powered by a Williams International FJ33-5A turbine engine with Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC). The flight displays are an expansive 14-inches and offer split screen tech for multi feature display. The jet has room for three of these displays allowing the pilot to check the status of all systems easily.  The cabins are very modular and they typically can have up to 28 possible seating configurations. The premium leather seating is what you would expect in a more expensive larger jet and the upholstery is first class.  I personally like the executive layout, but that will only have 2 passenger seats, room for luggage, and the pilot and co-pilot seats in the flight deck. The “complete” configuration is more common and will give you passenger seating for five but is more comfortable for four as in most very lights. The Cabin width is 5.1 ft and a height of 4.1 ft so you will need to bend over to get in or out of your seat as expected in these smaller jets. Like we said, size matters. You can expect to pay roughly $2,500 USD per hour to charter the Cirrus Vision Jet.

eclipse 550
By TheSkunk – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

The Eclipse 550 Jet has the capacity of 6 passengers including crew with a max operating altitude of 41,000 ft. Its max cruising speed is 375 ktas with a max takeoff weight of 6,000 lbs and a lower 636 lb payload. This plane has a max range of 1,125 nautical miles with a very efficient twin-engine jet fuel consumption of only 59 gallons per hour. It also comes equipped with FADEC which translates into reduced pilot workload. It is powered by twin Pratt & Whitney PW610F turbofan engines that are specially designed for the point to point travel of the new generation of private flyers. Pilots enjoy an advanced Flight Management Systems with benefits such as enhanced situational awareness, electronic charts and maps, display and control of the aircraft systems, and integrated autopilot control panel. The interior has the feel of a luxury suite with ergonomically designed seats with ample space to store your luggage. The cabin width is 4.6 ft and the height is 4.2 ft so a little narrower than the Cirrus. The 550 will typically have a $2,850 USD per hour rental rate within the range for these very light jets.

private jet
By Michael Pereckas – HondaJet, CC BY 2.0

The Honda HA-420 Jet has the capacity of 7 passengers including crew and a max operating altitude of 43,000 ft. Its max cruising speed is 420 ktas with a max take off weight of 10,600 lbs and a 547 lb payload. The plane has a max range of 1,206 nautical miles with a sleek design resulting in reduced drag at higher speeds. It has a very prominent over-the-wing engine configuration setting it apart in this class. The jet is powered by twin GE Honda HF120 turbofans developed under the GE-Honda partnership. It is a low wing monoplane that has a composite fuselage and aluminum wing. The typical flight deck features the first touchscreen controlled all-digital glass integration with the Garmin G3000 avionics system. The cabin is 5 ft wide with a height of 4.8 ft. It feels a lot bigger when you are seated inside for sure which comes from its cutting edge combination of co-cured integral structure and honeycomb sandwich structures. The leather seating in the cabin is wide and ample for larger passengers, can be moved inwards for better headroom and shoulder space, and has an executive feel. The HA-420 will typically be a bit less expensive these days at a $2,400 hourly rental rate as the newer more expensive Honda Elite Jet becomes more widely available.

Of course there are many more options to choose from than just the aforementioned trio. Offerings from Cessna like the Mustang, the Citation M2 and the Cessna Citation jets all require a mention here and are very popular choices. They are great planes in this category and are definitely tried and true. The three we featured are a little more bold in style and appeal to the newer gen set becoming jet set. Next week will will look at the workhorses of the light jet entries in our charter world.

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*These are base hourly rates per craft type with no ferry times, FET taxes, taxi time, or fuel surcharges. Typical final hourly rates will be higher based on category and timing.

The 50 Hour Guideline, what is it?

Posted on by rbaliatico

50 hour guideline, flying private                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 The 50 hour guideline for flying private.

 

 

 

What a crazy week we just went through.  A rare November hurricane, Hurricane Nicole, ripped through central Florida and its Atlantic coast causing more damage to a state still in the throws of recovering from the devastation hurricane Ian caused. The dramatic midterm election has kept politicians spinning their defeats while we ponder the ramifications. The good news of a cooling economy CPI figure led to a nice market rally only to see the crypto world implode via the newly announced bankruptcy at FTX. The FTX sponsorship sign on the crown of the Miami Heat arena came down faster than its creator fled the Bahamas, supposedly in a private jet.

Well luckily in the private aviation world this all disappears as soon as we hear the familiar whirr of the Jet engines that help us leave it all behind as we depart for our next adventure. This week we will discuss The 50 Hour Guideline. If you feel you will prefer or have the need to fly private, it is important to take a look at how many hours per year you are likely to fly. If you plan to fly more than 50 hours per year you may want to look into either owning a jet or, more likely, investing in a fractional ownership of a jet. If you plan to fly fewer than the 50 hour guideline, then the world of private air charter and the many features it offers will be the optimal choice.

I define the big players in private air charter industry as companies owning and operating 80 or more planes on their respective books. Many of these (8 companies by my last count), are the ones you are probably most familiar with and see advertised all the time. Some are public companies, some plan to be public companies, and the rest are still private. They all typically have ever-changing flight memberships like jet cards that usually park your dollars towards future private flights. Perks vary, and hourly rates are for the most part, subject to change.  The most important decision for you is to choose the right tool for your flight missions. Many of you are new this type of travel and are being propelled into it by our recent Covid-19 pandemic. The good news is you have many options to find the right company to do business with. Some companies are charter brokers, and some are charter providers with very big operations using their own planes.

A company like ours specializes in what is called an empty leg. These are the one-way flights many operators list for sale with a specific plane travelling between two specific locations and are often at a discounted price. The better companies, like ours of course, have contacts and relationships with many of these private air charter operators so we can string together one-ways to give you roundtrip capability, or accomplish multi-leg missions. Many times we utilize both for these multi-legs, so we can save you money with an empty leg or two combined with a regular air charter agreement to get the job done.

The good news is when you charter a plane you can decide the schedule, who travels with you, and where you are flying to. There are more than 5000 public use airports in the United States compared to only about 500 commercial, giving you greater flexibility in your travels.  Then you decide if you want to work directly with an operator which can be limiting since it will depend on the size of their fleet, the size of the planes they have, and their typical destinations. The good thing is that these companies will be operating under the FAA Part 135a rules as we discussed in prior posts. There are also a lot of brokers that work as the middleman to get you flights. Some of these are quite large and prefer not to own their own planes. They will instead have affiliate programs with multiple 135a operators, which will give you more options than with stand alone charter operators. Our company acts more like a client representative or advocate, helping you manage all your private aviation needs. Although we have our contact list of preferred operators, we keep your options open to provide the best price-value ratio we can find. We do all this while keeping your anonymity to make sure the operators don’t price based on your financial status or fame.

There are many types of aircraft to choose from and we will discuss them more later. Often the aircraft decision will be based on the distance of the flight and the number in your travel party. Some shorter flights can be easily accommodated by a prop plane such as a King Air, but some clients tell us that isn’t the way they think of private air charter telling us props are for boats. We try to keep an open mind, and make suggestions of all suitable craft so you can decide how to spend your hard-earned money.

The industry is a bit complex and, quite frankly, there are many options to choose from when it comes to your private jet provider.  You have the smaller firms pushing Jet Cards, and bigger ones touting special memberships. Some are good and some are bad, but the one thing I can say for sure is that whatever type of offer you choose you can expect it to change often. We often see hourly rates go up, or changes in the amount of taxi times, or lately the dreaded fuel surcharges being added. For the most part, you just need some good advice and help along the way to navigate these turbulent waves. Once you find that person or company you can really start to enjoy private jet travel.

We rely on our flyer profiles to know who you are and what you do in life. We make sure we fully understand the type of private air travel you need and whether its for business or pleasure or a little of both. Pricing can be quite the shock for the first timer. Many think for a couple of bucks more I can move from flying business or first class to flying private. Some want to just buy the seat in a private plane with others looking to do the same. That has some advantages in price, but its far from being private. We feel its all relative and sometimes you have to put the price into perspective for the clients. The most important thing is to build a good synergy with the company or person handling these flights and inquires for you. The relationship you build can save you thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars annually.

We will broadly step into the common aircraft types and what missions they’re best suited for in next weeks post. Then in future posts you can expect to see some detailed aircraft reviews and outlooks as the industry changes.

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Private air charter has many challenges

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private air charter                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Private air charter has many challenges ahead. Pictured above is one of our Managing Partners, Katherine Koch, my darling wife and future commercial ATP pilot. Unfortunately she only represents a small number of future commercial pilots headed towards the private air charter industry or a major commercial airlines. The pilot shortage is private aviation’s number one challenge, further exacerbated by competition for pilots from airline and freight operations. The airlines are offering huge sign-on bonuses, great work schedules, amazing benefits packages, and lofty annual salaries particularly for anyone experienced enough to graduate to the left seat of these jets. After forcing early retirements during the pandemic, the majors are desperately playing catch-up in this highly competitive industry. Upward mobility was already accelerated before the pandemic but now in the aftermath pilots are upgrading at minimums and jumping from regional to major airlines with unprecedented speed. There is a huge presence in aviation schools by most of the regional airlines that feed these major carriers, something we are not seeing enough of by the private air charter industry. It is a major challenge among many others we will discuss further in this article. In this article, we will take a quick look back 5 years ago at the challenges to private air charter that have shaped the current industry. In next week’s post, we will take a deeper dive into the current private air charter industry.

The private jet charter business had its fair share of problems like any other industry five years ago. Staffing was an issue but not to the extent it is today. Other factors overshadowed the issue back then. A lot of air charter companies didn’t have enough foresight and planning skills. Many wound up with negative budgets by spending way more than they were taking in. Debt had a way of getting out of control especially when the tempting business and lucrative opportunities of private jets blinded many before it was too late. Lawsuits from unhappy flyers, ex-employees, competing companies, and even the government were also mounting. Lawsuits can easily ground even the best private aviation organizations. Even airports caused operators location issues as many towers lost their funding and were decommissioned or were under pressure from localities looking to take the land and develop it for housing.

Further, it is easy to see the operational inefficiencies of the management of emptylegs. Many flyers don’t even know what an emptyleg is, and, worse, are often unaware they are paying for them.  For example, let’s say a flyer is in New York with a business need in Chicago but the operator’s plane is in Houston. The plane first has to be flown from Texas to New York most likely empty. Then the plane picks up the passengers to bring them to Chicago, but the flyer isn’t leaving anytime soon because they are in town for a business conference. For many reasons the plane and crew may have to go back to the home base and depending on demand may be flown back to Texas empty without passengers. Guess who pays for all that flying? You got it: most of the time its the flyer who booked the flight! What the flyer sees as one flight from New York to Chicago may actually be three flights. Add in a broker fee, flight card membership, et cetera, and you’re looking at footing a pretty large bill. Sometimes operators have to absorb the costs of of the empties, cutting into their margins. With this simple example, you can see how inefficient and complex the business can be. Keep in mind this was the common structure five years ago and there are many new aspects to this “empty flying” we will discuss in our current look at the industry next week.

Five years ago, there were all kinds of new apps that were funded by all types of investors. Some of these investors are famous and some are very rich and influential.  Memberships with those companies and cost of flights had nothing to do with actual costs and profit margins. Some operators intentionally operated at a loss for the sake of customer acquisition, particularly for influencer types of flyers. Investor money covered the differences (losses) as the invested parties wagered for a huge IPO in the future in hopes of reaping a bigger ROI. Unfortunately, that often didn’t happen. Wall Street loves revenue, profits, and earnings per share, something these apps and operators had no way of showing.  Add in fluctuating fuel prices that made planning and forecasting impossible; operators often have little power over fuel prices and can get caught in the crosshairs of government policies. Many of these operators agreed to fixed hourlies to get clients for these new apps, cutting their margins and making them ripe for failure.  Adding in rising insurance costs and the overall expenses from the certification process to make an operator a FAA 135  compliant operator, many operators were headed to bankruptcy court or being purchased by larger operators. This trend of consolidation really started in the last five years and we are seeing it continue today. Back then many operators were inefficient in the overall day to day operations of their charter businesses and positioned themselves for takeover bid or overall failure of the business. 

It truly has brought us to this point today and the writing is on the wall for this upcoming year. With the realities of recession, production delays due to supply chain issues, and many aspects of our industry we will touch on next week, it is clear that what we do today will shape the future of the private air charter industry. There is a lot of opportunity, and many large private air charter operations are well positioned for dominance, but this industry’s growth potential still dwarfs the number of players on the field, leaving more cake than crumbs for the smart operator and people serving them.

The Japanese have a concept called Kaizen referring to business activities that continuously improve all functions and involve all employees from the CEO to the assembly line workers. Kaizen also applies to processes, such as purchasing and logistics, that cross organizational boundaries into the supply chain. It is something the industry needs to embrace and we will explore this too next week. 

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