Best jet cards for private jet flights under 35 minutes

Why drive for hours when you can fly in minutes? From light to large-cabin jets, these are the best jet cards for flights under 35 minutes

From Westchester County to the Hamptons, Naples to Key West, St. Louis to the Lake of the Ozarks, San Jose to Napa, and more, a private jet can save hours of driving time. The right jet card can turn every weekend into a long weekend. Using our exclusive QUICK COMPARE FLIGHT PRICING, we’ve analyzed hundreds of programs and more than 40,000 data points to show you the best picks for your short flights.

Instead of spending hours in the car, here is how long it will take in the air on a private jet to fly to these popular summer getaways:

Short Hop Private Jet Flights

• Westchester County (HPN) to Westhampton (FOK) – 13 minutes
• San Jose (SJC) to Napa County (APC) – 14 minutes
• Boston (BOS) to Nantucket (ACK) – 21 minutes
• Los Angeles (HHR) to Santa Barbara (SBA) – 22 minutes
• St. Louis (SUS) to Lake of the Ozarks (AIZ) – 25 minutes
• Naples (APF) to Key West (EYW) – 26 minutes
• San Francisco (SFO) to Truckee-Tahoe (TRK) – 27 minutes
• Chicago (PWK) to Door County Cherryland (SUE) – 30 minutes
• Westchester County (HPN) to Nantucket (ACK) – 31 minutes
• San Francisco (SFO) to Monterey (MRY) – 33 minutes
• Atlanta (PDK) to Brunswick (BQK) – 34 minutes
• Los Angeles (VNY) to Las Vegas (LAS) – 35 minutes

The above flight times are based on light jets with no winds using our Private Jet Flight Time calculator.

Now, how do you find the best jet card option for your needs?

In the below tables, you will find provider, program, buy-in by hours or deposit amount, the minimum number of seats guaranteed on non-peak days, the daily minimum flight time charged for that program, hourly rate, including fuel surcharges and 7.5% excise tax. The final flight cost column factors in the minimum, how taxi time is charged, and amortizes membership fees over 25 hours so you can see the estimated flight cost for each option.

In terms of short hops on light jets, NetJets is the lowest priced option, based on their Phenom 300 Elite Card. That’s because it doesn’t have a minimum, so you only play actual flight time, plus 12 minutes of taxi time. While we used 25 minutes, you can compare your favorite routes by entering estimated flight time in cell AF on the comparison spreadsheet access included in your paid subscription.

Light Jets – Lowest Flight Cost – 25 minute flights

Very Light Jets – Lowest Flight Cost – 25 minute flights

If you are open to very light jets, OneFlight offers an array of options, with the lead price being on the Eclipse 500. Nicholas Air offers the Phenom 100. Keep in mind the lower seating capacity – and limited baggage space.

NetJets is the lowest-priced option for midsize jets based on 25 minutes of flight time. You need to buy 25 hours, and it’s non-refundable. However, you have 24 months to use your funds.

As a tip, always keep in mind how many people will be flying as the number of passengers guaranteed varies. You can filter the number of seats you need in Column Q on the spreadsheet.

Midsize Jets – Lowest Flight Cost – 25 minute flights

While many associate NetJets with being expensive, and its hourly rate are in the highest tier, again, this is an example where the devil is in the details. For those of you who want space, the Latitude brings a stand-up cabin even for the short flight. Another point to keep in mind no matter where you are flying is the daily minimums. While many folks focus on hourly rates, only when you combine it with the daily minimum can you begin to tell which program offers the best value for your specific missions.

Super Midsize Jets – Lowest Flight Cost – 25 minute flights

If you are traveling with 10 or more people, you will need to look at large cabin programs. However, large cabin programs are not created equal – both daily minimums and the number of seats guaranteed. For example, while 10 is generally the minimum for non-peak days, as you can see, some programs guarantee up to 14 seats. Also, some providers have two large cabin programs, the main delineation being the range of the jets and the number of seats guaranteed.

Large Cabin Jets – Lowest Flight Cost – 25 minute flights

Another way to look at short flights is how many seats you need. That means looking at providers by aircraft size is not necessarily the best way, particularly for flights under three hours where even light jets would have the range. In this example, we need eight passenger seats. We’ve excluded belted lavs, so all seats refer to those in the cabin.

Right away, you might note Nicholas Air at the top of the list. That’s because it configures its Phenom 300s with eight seats – six club seats and a two-passenger divan across from the entry door.

8 seats – Lowest Flight Cost – 25 minute flights

Not covered in this analysis are turboprops, which can be great for short flights for two reasons. First, the short distance means you don’t get to take full advantage of a jet’s faster speed at cruising altitude. In other words, the shorter the flight, the more economical a turboprop. The other factor plus is turboprops can often seat up to eight passengers versus six passengers on a light jet.

Concord, Nicholas Air, OneFlight, and Wheels Up have guaranteed availability with 60-minute minimums, inclusive taxi time in turboprop programs. Use the filter in row 3 and column N of the comparisons spreadsheet to compare turboprops, or stay tuned for our upcoming look.

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