On the face of it, air charter seems to be a luxury that high-flying corporate executives get as perks of the job. But look at it a little deeper, and turns out it's actually a money-saver. The thing is that a top level executive's time is very valuable, and each minute spent in an airport lounge is a lost minute for the company.
With each day and month, the situation at the airports is getting worse. Flight delays, airport security, missed connections and the exhausting experience of boarding a commercial flight all combine to wring the enthusiasm out of business travelers. An executive who turns up at an important meeting after such an experience can hardly be expected to be very effective.
The point here is that all that time spent is company time being wasted. So it's safe to assume that it's profitable for a company to allow the cream of its top level executives to hop around in private jets. But this doesn't mean the company has to shell out big dollars to buy planes.
One of the more popular arrangements is called a fractional ownership system, where a person or company is one of many owners of the plane (usually between 2 to 8). The whole thing is managed by a fractional ownership company, which will have many planes of the same make and model. So when a company wants to use a plane, it just has to pay for the flight costs, including the fuel.
Other than the cost-savings of shared ownership, there are many more benefits. For example, passengers on commercial carriers can only fly to and from a limited number of big airports. An air charter, however, can fly to thousands of big and small airports, many of which are private.
This further reduces local transportation needs, and the time spent traveling. Plus, there are no delays for boarding or exiting. It is possible to drive right up to the plane and have the baggage loaded up right then and there. Pets, if any, can travel in the cabin.
Executives can travel in absolute comfort and get some good sleep. Or they can put in a few hours' work with a laptop, wi-fi internet, videoconferencing, satellite phones and other tools. Some commercial carriers do offer some of these tools, but they cannot be used on account of a lack of privacy.
For personal use, it's hard to justify air charter as a cost-saver, but there are situations where it can be a life-saver instead. Medical travel, for instance, is one such area where the patient might not want to ensure the agony of commercial flights. Elderly people and tourists unsure of being able to catch connecting flights may want to make their holiday experience more memorable and safe by taking a private jet instead.
It's important to note here that prices for an air charter are not that high anymore, and it's a lot closer to what's considered acceptable spending while on vacation, similar to staying in a luxury hotel. Before booking a commercial flight ticket, just find out how much it would just for the same trip on a private jet. Most people are likely to end up surprised at how much cheaper it is than they thought it would be.
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