By-the-seat private jet Fleet Clubs delays launch; plans additional new routes

Start-up Fleet Clubs is planning Puerto Rico, Nantucket, Palm Beach as it delays its Miami-New York and Vail by-the-seat jet sharing flights until June

Fleet Clubs’ first flight of its by-the-seat memberships will now be in June.

The club, modeled after several programs that operate between the West Coast and Hawaii, had planned to begin a Miami International Airport (MIA)-Islip, Long Island (ISP), New York route in December.

A second club serving Miami-Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE) near Vail, Colorado, was scheduled to start in March and is also being moved until June.

“We experienced some delays on the carrier selection process, but we’re now on track for flights to begin from Miami in June,” CEO and Co-Founder Bernard Schwartz tells Private Jet Card Comparisons.

Schwartz says Fleet Clubs has now settled on Sun Country Airlines as its initial operator. The airline flies Boeing 737-700 and 737-800 Next Gen narrowbody jets.

At the same time, the start-up has begun “accepting commitments” for clubs covering Westchester County Airport (HPN) to Vail and Palm Beach International Airport.

Fleet Clubs plans to start soliciting commitments for clubs for flyers traveling from White Plains, north of New York City, to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Nantucket Memorial Airport next month.

Joining the club costs $250,000, although it was originally waived for founding members.

Flight pricing MIA-EGE starts at $2,100 each way, with MIA-ISP priced at $1,250 per leg.

Packages begin at $50,000 for the New York flights and $90,000 for Colorado.

Fleet Club is promising 2×2 domestic-style first-class seating, gourmet meals, and luxury partnerships.

The big benefits of by-the-seat private flight options are they use FBOs and private hangars, allowing flyers to check in with shorter deadlines and avoid the hassles of crowded airports.

In the New York-South Florida market Fleet Clubs faces competition from XO, JSX, and Blade, while Aero and JSX offer flights between Los Angeles and Los Cabos.