Charters can beat scheduled first class for efficiency, but higher prices and a lack of luxury can be a drawback
A typical working day at a small airstrip just outside London and you park your car right outside the tiny terminal building. Once inside, a receptionist offers fresh coffee and croissants as your pilots greet you, take your bag and escort you to the private jet waiting on the apron.
No sooner will you have settled into a sumptuous armchair-like seat, perhaps accepted a glass of fresh juice and the morning newspaper from the flight attendant than you will be taking off. There are few air-traffic delays here; indeed there are very few other planes to be seen at all. And the VIP treatment will continue when you land.
Supersonic scheduled air travel may have disappeared along with Concorde but that doesn't mean an end to in-flight luxury and convenience.
There are plenty of options, depending on your preference and the size of your organization's bank account. Spend a small fortune and you can fly first class; spend a slightly larger one and you can charter a private jet.
Mind you, even though the supersonic age may be over, airlines are still giving private-jet companies some stiff competition.
They know, for example, that flying in first or business class is not only about what you experience while you are awake but also how well you can sleep.
Seats that convert into fully flat beds are pretty much the norm these days. Dubai-based Emirates, for example is offering what it bills as the world's first private first-class suite on planes flying some long-haul routes. Virgin has even introduced double beds in their upper class section on some of its flights.
This all makes for a tough act for private-jet companies to follow. They may be able to match some of the luxury offered by the scheduled airlines but their biggest selling point is the convenience of taking off when you like, from where you choose. And there are plenty of passengers for whom privacy and convenience are worth the often hefty price ticket.
"Chartering a business jet typically costs more than flying scheduled, but sometimes the price difference is less than you might expect," says one London-based corporate executive who preferred that neither he nor his organization were named.
"The problem is that, in the kind of economy we have at present, people can misunderstand the reasons for using private planes and see them as an extravagance, rather than as a professional tool."
"Although business aviation is well-established in North America and Europe, which are the largest markets globally by installed customer base, demand is still in its infancy in some of the fastest-growing economies of the world," says Trevor Esling, vice-president for international sales at aircraft maker Cessna Aircraft Co.
"For example, Cessna expects the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, Russia and Brazil to be among the markets leading the recovery in business jet sales following the recession," he says. "In the longer term, China is also likely to become a significant source of demand as its economic growth and airspace liberalization continues."
This is in spite of the fact that estimates suggest there are only around 30 private jets registered in China at present, though it is likely a number of foreign registered planes also operate there.
By comparison, around 17,600 private business jets and turboprop planes are registered in the U.S. and, according to Eurocontrol, the EU's official body for the safety of air navigation, about 4,300 in Europe.
While the private-jet charter market was hit hard by the credit crunch and recession, 2010 saw the beginning of a recovery, says Patrick Margetson-Rushmore, chief executive of London Executive Aviation, one of Europe's biggest executive aircraft charter operators.
"Bookings for 2010 were up about 20% over 2009, and in some months the rise in demand was much greater," he says. "For example, both the ash cloud in April and the snow chaos in December were very good news for our industry, as we were able to get our aircraft flying far quicker than scheduled airlines."
The reason for this, of course, was that, unlike mainstream airlines, private aviation companies didn't have to contend with airports congested with irate passengers waiting for their flights, or planes and crew that were out of position.
While the recession put a dent in overall demand for private jets, demand for the largest business jets, such as Dassault's trans-Atlantic Falcon 900EX, held up well. "The killer app of a business jet is time-saving", he says.
"Because the schedule is built around you, you can cover far more ground in a day than in an airliner. You avoid wasting time on the ground because you fly between quiet airports located as close as possible to your home and final destination."
This view is backed up by PremiAir, another company specializing in executive jets. "Sometimes a business jet is the only way to avoid a three-or four-day business trip," says group Managing Director David McRobert.
The big airlines are starting to recognize the benefits of using private jets as in addition to their first-class offerings, to fly routes not covered by their main service, he adds. "Lufthansa/Swiss already do it, British Airways has teamed with CitationAir in the USA , Korean Air has a marketing deal with Flexjet and Qatar Airways has formed Qatar Executive with Bombardier Challenger jets."
The price difference between the cost of a first-class ticket and hiring a private jet is usually, but not always, significant. There are some occasions, though, when the use of private jets makes perfect sense.
For example, if a small group of executives is traveling to the same meeting or a series of meetings in different parts of Europe , a private jet could be collectively cheaper and more convenient, particularly if you take into account the money you would save on hotel bills by not having to stay the night and the limited executive time needed to be spent traveling.
LEA quotes a price of around £17,000 ($27,500) to fly between Brussels and Madrid return, for example, on the same day on board a Cessna Citation Excel midsize business jet carrying up to eight passengers, or about £2,125 a head. This compares with £1,186 a head return in Brussels Airlines' business class.
If you want to fly direct from Munich to Dubai and back, you can travel on an Embraer Legacy 650 large-cabin business jet, which can carry up to 12 passengers on this route, for £65,200, or about £5,400 per passenger.
This compares with flying scheduled from Munich to Dubai in Emirates' first-class cabin, in which case the return fare is a bit over £4,500. And on routes such as this there are still plenty of corporate travelers prepared to pay for first-class travel. Why else would airlines maintain their first-class cabins, rather than convert them to business class and pack in more seats?
"We see many types of business booking flights with us," Mr. Margetson-Rushmore of LEA says. "Naturally banks form part of the customer base, but we also serve organizations in media, retail, property and many other sectors. As the charter market recovers we are seeing increased bookings from businesses right across this spectrum."
Flying by private jet between London and New York costs around £60,250 return, or about £10,000 a head, if six people travel together. This compares with British Airways' return first-class fares from around £8,600 or about £3,400 return in business class.
For some organizations, of course, it makes sense to own a jet, or indeed a small fleet of them. Oil company, Royal Dutch Shell, for example, bases a number of executive jets in Rotterdam, near the company's headquarters in the Hague, and they operate what is effectively a shuttle service between the Netherlands and other European destinations for company executives.
But even an entry-level jet such as the Cessna Mustang will set you back the thick end of about £1.5 million. A top-end long-range jet could cost about £11 million. And then there's the cost of maintenance, airport charges and landing fees, not to mention employing pilots and maybe even flight attendants.
There are, however, ways to reduce costs. Provided you don't mind your pride and joy being used by other people, you could charter it out when you are not using it yourself.
Some estimates suggest your company could see a net profit of more than £100,000 a year if you charter out a Cessna Mustang, for example, assuming it was used for about 500 hours a year.
If you don't fancy shelling out the whole price of a jet yourself you could consider fractional ownership. There are a number of companies operating in this way, allowing you to buy a certain number of flying hours a year.