Choosing Business Jets

If you’re in the market for a private jet, you’re doing a lot of research and searching for all the resources and information you can find to help you make a good decision in choosing a private jet.

Your first decision is probably, should you buy your own jet or use a charter service? If you will use a jet frequently and need to be able to arrange use of the jet easily, you may find owning a jet to be the better option. If you will only need a jet occasionally, chartering a private jet is probably the right choice. But you do have a middle option, fractional jet ownership. This means that you own a share of a plane, just like a timeshare condo, and you can use the jet for a certain amount of time each year for a set fee and an hourly maintenance fee. You should consider all of these factors in your decision about whether to own or charter a jet.

Next, how large a jet do you need? While it may be tempting to buy the smallest available jet “just to get into something,” think about who will be traveling and how large a plane you really need. If all of your team members cannot travel together because there is not room, your jet is not such a bargain after all. Buy as much plane as you need, even if that means you need to charter for a while before buying, or buy a fractional jet ownership instead of owning a jet outright.

When you’re looking at the cost of your jet, consider how much you’re currently spending on commercial travel, and how much a jet would cost in comparison. Make sure you factor in hotels for staying overnight to catch a flight the next morning, and rental cars from far-out airports because the airlines don’t fly where you’re going when you’re going. A private jet can eliminate many of these expenses.

Think also about the tax advantages of owning a private jet, and have your accountant crunch some numbers for you. You may be surprised at how affordable a jet is.

Also keep in mind the time savings. A private jet will leave when you want to leave and go where you want to go, within reason. You’ll leave when you need to and get where you need to go on time. No flight delays, no waiting in Homeland Security lines with your wingtips in your hand. For many people, this alone is worth the cost of chartering a jet.

Chances are that over a year, and especially over a longer term, like five years, you can save enough, counting ancillary expenses and the value of time, to make traveling by private jet much more economical than flying commercial. This is especially true for companies that frequently fly executives to client and partner meetings. At first buying a jet sounds outrageous, but once you look at the options, you may decide it is the only reasonable mode of travel.