First, we are entering the world of the luxurious and elite, so we don’t hire a private jet. Oh no, we charter that jet for your private use. Already, you think you are going to have to pay large for that luxury, privacy, and convenience. Well, let’s explore the key factors that go into costing the charter of a private jet and then work out what some of those journeys might end up doing to your bank account.
The key factors
There are three factors to impact on your costs. The first is the type of jet you choose, which will obviously be directly linked to the range you can fly. Second, there is the size of the jet, which again impacts on the range and the size of the passenger list. Finally, how long you wish to fly will have an obvious effect, as the further you go the more fuel is required. So, in short, you need t to consider:
· Jet size and type
· Flight distance
· Level of demand
· Number of passengers
· Amount of luggage
· Airport Fees
· Refuelling and jet repositioning costs
You might think all this sounds like you should buy your aircraft. However, you are going to need a cool £120 million for a standard jet. You will then still need to fund the crew, the airport costs and the fuel, to name but a few. Therefore, chartering is cost-effective.
Chartering a turboprop or light jet
A turboprop or light jet include such planes as the Cessna or the Beechcraft. Such a plane will allow you to take a short domestic flight and will generally have space for up to six people. If you were hoping to make a short hop between New York and Boston in the US, a flight of 45 minutes, a turboprop such as Piper Cheyenne is perfect.
If you want to travel in a little more comfort, you might choose a light jet such as a Beechcraft King Air 200. This will cost you about £15000 for a flight from LA to Seattle. You will charter your plane by the hour. Therefore, you are looking at about £5000 per hour for your Beechcraft King Air 200. This plane gives you the necessary flight range of about 1800 miles needed for this domestic trip in the US – at a time of about 3 hours.
If you can fit six passengers on your jet, you are agreeing to a ticket price of £2500 per person for a flight between LA and Seattle.
Chartering a mid-size or super-mid-size jet
If you want to upgrade, the next level plane includes such names as the Learjet, Embraer and Gulfstream.
If you choose a mid-size jet, nine people can journey for about four hours. If you fancy a trip in a Bombardier Learjet 60 XR from San Francisco to Houston, you will pay about £30000. This means that you can share the costs of about £3300 per ticket. Alternatively, you upgrade a little to the Embraer Legacy 500 and pay about £50,000 to go from San Diego to Charlotte – a cool £5500 per person.
If take it up another level and choose the Gulfstream, you have a range of 6.5 hours. This gives you the opportunity for a decent international hop between Orlando and Lima in Peru. If you take the Gulfstream at £10000 per hour, you are looking at £65000 for your international flight or about £7000 per person.
Chartering heavy jet
We are now getting into serious aviation territory. Your planes, such as the Airbus, Boeing or Gulfstream, can carry 19 passengers with a decent amount of space to share. You will also be able to take a transatlantic flight, as the range increases significantly. Chartering a Bombardier Challenger 850, you can fly from Miami to Lisbon with 15 other people for £150,000. Your plane ticket will be a cool £10,000 for this flight.
There are ultra-luxury jets that come heavily customised to the passenger’s needs. You can choose the Airbus A319CJ for instance, which is the most expensive private charter option. It will cost you a weighty £180,000 to carry 19 people from New York to London in eight hours. This is about £9500 per passenger but for this, you get an office, entertainment system, bedroom, and a bathroom.
It is possible to go for 14 hours in a private jet. Choosing a Gulfstream G550 allows you to fly from Washington DC to Tokyo for £16000 per hour. Therefore, this long-haul flight will cost you £224,000 for 19 people. However, you will travel in luxury, with a genuine option to sleep. Therefore, if you are a high-powered businessperson, whose time is money, this could offer a value option for your trip to Japan.
Clever schemes
It is likely that a lot of these figures are mind-blowing. Even if you could gather 18 of your best friends together to share your jet, you will still pay a lot for your ticket. However, there are multiple schemes around the world that are designed to help people experience private charter flights. For instance, there a start-up called Blackbird that allows you to book a flight on a scheduled flight with a small number of others, hitch a ride of a privately hire jet that has spare seats – as well as opt for a private charter of your own for a minimum of $1000. Costs are kept down by the company by using regional airports with lower landing costs.
Another clever idea is the air taxi run by Linear Air. You can call for a flight like you would an uber and the seats will be allocated to you where there might be spare seats. Therefore, it is possible for you to dream about a private jet flight – and with the current pandemic, it could be your only option for safe travel in the near future.
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