The industry of private jets and charter flights isn’t one with a great deal of information or literature written about it, perhaps owing to the belief that it’s a world reserved only for the wealthiest. However, if you’re one of the many people who’ve come to discover that charter flights are, in fact, for you – or if you’ve found a job among the many offered by the industry – it’s time to become acquainted with the world of private flight. Here are a few things that you might not have been aware of.
- Private jets get to land at so many more airports. They’re not restricted to the major airports like most airlines are, and can instead land at and take off from smaller, privately owned ones.
- Sometimes the crew are required to stay overnight or longer at their client’s destination. One of the most exciting aspects of working in a private jet flight crew is getting to stay in new, interesting places. In some cases, when the client has booked for the return flight, the pilots and cabin crew would stay at a hotel in the destination city.
- Charter rates can vary a lot depending on factors such as jet size and price of fuel. A Citation Mustang can be hired for about $1,700 an hour, while a Gulfstream 550 for $8,600.
- Charter flights are an option for those flying to international events, such as the World Cup, Super Bowl, Monaco Grand Prix, and New York Fashion Week.
- Crews would cater to dining requests of all sorts, from the ultra-lavish to the downright bizarre.
- Light jets are the most frequently the type of aircraft used for charter flights. Popular models include the Beechjet 400 and Cessna Citation V/Ultra.
- Most private jets allow pets on board, and your four-legged companion would be sat comfortably in the passenger cabin with you (rather than in cargo).
- The Bombardier Global 8000 has a range of 7,900 nautical miles (nearly 9,000 statute miles) on a single tank of gas.
- Back in the 80s, business magnate Warren Buffett initially hated the idea of corporate jets, expressing his disdain about how costly they were to own and operate. But then had what he called a “counter-revelation” about a year later; “travel is now considerably easier,” he noted.
- You can be part-owner of a private jet. This arrangement is called fractional ownership; multiple individuals purchase shares for an aircraft, according to the flight hours they expect they would need. In what was the largest private aviation deal to date, NetJets in 2012 spent $9.6 billion to acquire 425 aircraft.