I had the pleasure of attending the National Business Aviation Association Conference in Orlando, Florida earlier this month and it was amazing! All the major player, big private jet manufacturers were in attendance: Cessna, Gulfstream, Bombardier, Dassault, etc. The hot topic this year was, as you could probably guess, Apps. The show was full of new applications to book jets with your phone. It’s a promising idea, but what people have to understand about private jet applications is that they will ultimately fail unless you have a good brokerage running them.
The App is essentially a booking engine; no more, no less. In the background of each private jet application you will need people to source the aircraft, create the flight plan, book the catering, handle the locations, and provide logistical support for every flight. Even the best algorithms can not predict mechanical issues or changes and trust me, vendors will not think twice before cancelling a trip you booked through their application. I have had vendors cancel on me one hour before a flight.
The best applications can not compete with an experienced broker. Do you really want to book a fifty thousand dollar charter through an App? When you show up to the airport and there is no plane on site, who will you call? In the six years I have been in this industry I have seen ride share programs, jet card programs, and even big brokers go out of business. The private jet industry is not very forgiving.
Do yourself a favor and find a good broker. Each and every mission requires a different aircraft. Depending on passengers, how much luggage you will be bringing, the elevation and length of the runway, whether you want to go non-stop, the safety rating of the company and aircraft… I could go on for days! Booking a plane is the easy part. It’s the behind-the-scenes logistics, which result in a flawless flight experience, that are the most important.
Request a charter quote through your iPhone through our web based quoting tool.
