Business Jet Traveler’s Toolbox

Essential reading for anyone just getting started in bizav.

Sequestration: How Tower Closures Will Affect You
April 1, 2013
The ATC tower at Danbury Airport in Connecticut, which is scheduled to close on May 5. (photo: John McCarth
Expect the possibility of delays at airports you use, starting April 7.
Jets for the long haul
March 25, 2013
Jets for the long haul
The changing face of global commerce is rerouting flight plans. “Many companies are using large-cabin, long-range business jets to provide nonstop access to overseas markets, especially Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa,” said Ed Bolen, the National Business Aviation Association’s CEO.
Importing an Aircraft
March 19, 2013
Importing an Aircraft
Once upon a time, the vast majority of business jets were owned and operated in the U.S., but that’s changing. Residents of other countries represent an ever-growing segment of the market, and the business of buying and selling corporate jets is increasingly international. In fact, a majority of factory-new aircraft these days are delivered outside the U.S.
Exit Strategy
February 26, 2013
Exit Strategy
Trip-protection insurance is popular with airline passengers who worry that a change in plans could mean forfeiture of airfare, prepaid accommodations and other upfront travel costs. Many air charter customers could benefit even more from such coverage, due to the amount of money at stake. Charter operators typically assess cancellation penalties that escalate as departure times approach.
Climb aboard–so to speak
February 8, 2013
Climb aboard–so to speak
While most aircraft completion and refurbishment centers these days can provide clients with a one-dimensional, computer-generated virtual cabin walk-through in various design phases, some centers now offer much more advanced 3-D virtual interiors. Others are creating real, full-scale mockups that let customers literally enter a replica of the cabin.
Chartering out your jet
December 5, 2012
Chartering out your jet
Perhaps you own a business jet and have been thinking about making it available for charter. That’s not always a great idea (see below) but if it makes sense for you, it can offer a rather painless way to recoup some operating costs. Here’s how to proceed.
Can you really fly privately for airline prices?
December 5, 2012
Can you really fly privately for airline prices?
You’ve probably seen ads and articles that suggest you can fly privately for prices that rival first-class airline fares and even coach prices. Last year, for example, Forbes headlined a story “How to Fly Private Jets at Airline Prices,” while The New York Times ran “Try a Private Jet, at Public Prices.”
Preowned Annual Report
December 1, 2012
Preowned Annual Report
The used jet market has had to ­contend with more than its fair share of obstacles over the past few years and 2012 didn’t offer any relief. They say that when the stock market moves up it climbs a wall of worry and that’s probably not much different from how jet buyers view the aircraft market. That said, there may be a bit less to worry about than there was last year at this time.
How to buy an airplane
August 23, 2012
How to buy an airplane
Think of buying an airplane as an exercise akin to building a house or purchasing an old one.
Should you buy a jet card?
August 7, 2012
Should you buy a jet card?
Jet cards, introduced just over a decade ago as bait for fractional-ownership programs, are now the access option of choice for many business aviation users. The cards are even finding a place in the wallets of numerous aircraft owners and dedicated charter customers.

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Quote/Unquote

“When you get into the larger aircraft it becomes like a hotel, with dozens of staff supporting the plane based in a galley area down below. You have very comprehensive cooking facilities, and on larger aircraft we have looked at theatres, with spiral staircases and a Steinway grand piano. The limitations for what you can put inside a plane are pretty much the limits of physics, and even money cannot always overcome that. Even so, people are still always trying to push [the limits]. ”

-Howard Guy of Design Q, a UK-based consultancy