Written by To compare private jet membership programs you have to ask the right questions
Private jet card membership programs provide a convenient way to pre-pay for private aviation travel. Rather than committing long-term to fractional ownership or needing to negotiate with a charter broker trip-by-trip, individuals sign up for a program with a contractual set of guarantees so that booking a flight is as easy as one call or tapping on an App. However, to find the right one for your needs, you need to do a little homework.
Below are 36 questions you should ask before buying a jet card. These questions will help you isolate differences that are important for your flying needs.
- Who owns the company, what’s the ownership structure, where is it based and when was it founded?
- How many employees are there?
- What jet cards are offered?
- Which aircraft are applicable for each jet card program?
- What are the denominations of the program? Hours, miles, distance or days?
- What’s the hourly rate? Is Federal Excise Tax (FET) included?
- Where is the service area of the program for your contracted rate?
- What’s the minimum seating for aircraft in each program?
- How are aircraft sourced and what are the standards?
- Does the program use safety-rating agencies, such as ARGUS, Wyvern and IS-BAO for sourcing?
- What are the pilot experience minimums?
- Is there guaranteed availability at a contracted rate?
- Do your funds or hours expire? Can you get a refund? What’s the refill policy?
- Is there an escrow account option?
- How much liability and risk insurance is provided?
- Are there any membership fees or monthly dues?
- Is there a CPI escalator that will raise your rate?
- Are there fuel surcharges?
- Is de-icing included?
- What’s the charge for taxi time?
- What is the minimum flying time charged per segment and day?
- Are there round trip discounts? What’s the definition of a roundtrip?
- How many peak days are there? What is the peak day surcharge?
- What’s the lead-time for reservations, including peak days?
- Can you access multiple aircraft at the same time?
- What’s the cancellation deadline, including for peak days?
- Can you upgrade or downgrade the size of your aircraft and are there blackouts? Is there a fee?
- Do you have your choice of FBO?
- What catering is included?
- Is WiFi guaranteed?
- Is a fully enclosed lavatory guaranteed?
- Are pets allowed? Are there fees?
- What’s the minimum age for unaccompanied minors?
- What’s the service recovery policy?
- Is there 24/7/365 customer support?
- What are the lifestyle and luxury perks and partnerships?