November 3, 2024
While jet card hourly rates inched up, flying terms – daily minimums, peak days, callouts – are getting more friendly for users.
Jet card providers offering fixed-or-capped hourly rates increased pricing in Q2, although flying terms – callouts, peak days, and daily minimums continued to improve.
The bottom line is both good and bad news for flyers.
The bad news is the higher rate of card pricing, up 0.8% from Q1 2024.
It was the second consecutive quarter rates increased.
Q1 jet card rates were up 1% from Q4 of 2023.
Q4 rates in 2023 had dropped 2.7% from Q3.
Hourly rates include fuel surcharges and 7.5% Federal Excise Tax.
However, fewer peak days mean fewer days where surcharges and other restrictions apply, which is good news.
What’s more, lower daily minimums mean those shorter flights are less costly.
Overall hourly rates increased to $10,954 from $10,862.
Without turboprops, hourly rates increased from $11,143 to $11,230.
Rates across six categories increased, with large cabin jets staying flat at $15,252 per hour – okay, up two dollars per hour.
| HOURLY RATES (in dollars) | Dec-19 | Dec-20 | Dec-21 | Dec-22 | Dec-23 | March-24 | June-24 |
| Turboprop | 4,762 | 4,454 | 5,982 | 7,348 | 6,269 | 6,263 | 6,533 |
| Very Light | 5,653 | 5,102 | 6,724 | 8,379 | 7,298 | 7,454 | 7,496 |
| Light | 6,023 | 5,600 | 6,978 | 8,462 | 7,918 | 7,918 | 7,993 |
| Midsize | 7,531 | 6,961 | 7,985 | 9,806 | 9,168 | 9,169 | 9,482 |
| Super Midsize | 10,042 | 9,190 | 10,570 | 12,675 | 11,793 | 11,878 | 12,307 |
| Large | 13,033 | 12,109 | 13,229 | 16,108 | 15,339 | 15,250 | 15,252 |
| Ultra-Long-Haul | 16,834 | 15,316 | 17,339 | 20,646 | 18,753 | 18,815 | 18,895 |
| Overall | 8,860 | 8,405 | 9,706 | 11,748 | 10,754 | 10,862 | 10,954 |
| Without Turboprops | 9,193 | 8,631 | 9,850 | 11,955 | 11,030 | 11,143 | 11,230 |
Source: Private Jet Card Comparisons
On a percentage basis, turboprops saw the biggest increase in hourly cost (+4.3%), followed by super midsize jets (+3.6%) and midsize jets (+3.4%).
Light jet pricing increased by +0.9% per hour, while VLJ pricing increased by +0.6%.
| HOURLY RATES | Change from March 24 | Change from Dec 23 | Change from Dec 22 | Change from Dec. 21 | Change from Dec. 20 | Change from Dec. 19 |
| Turboprop | 4.3% | 4.2% | -11.1% | 9.2% | 46.7% | 37.2% |
| Very Light | 0.6% | 2.7% | -10.5% | 11.5% | 46.9% | 32.6% |
| Light | 0.9% | 0.9% | -5.5% | 14.5% | 42.7% | 32.7% |
| Midsize | 3.4% | 3.4% | -3.3% | 18.7% | 36.2% | 25.9% |
| Super Midsize | 3.6% | 4.4% | -2.9% | 16.4% | 33.9% | 22.6% |
| Large | 0.0% | -0.6% | -5.3% | 15.3% | 26.0% | 17.0% |
| Ultra-Long-Haul | 0.4% | 0.8% | -8.5% | 9.0% | 23.4% | 12.2% |
| Overall | 0.8% | 1.9% | -6.8% | 12.9% | 30.3% | 23.6% |
| Without Turboprops | 0.8% | 1.8% | -6.1% | 14.0% | 30.1% | 22.2% |
Source: Private Jet Card Comparisons
Looking to the low point in pricing – December 2020, when the CARES Act waived the 7.5% Federal Excise Tax, overall hourly rates are 30.3% higher.
However, from pre-COVID Q4 2019, rates have risen by 23.6%.
The biggest increase in average hourly rate from those pre-COVID days in jet rates is for light jets – up 32.7%.
However, there is good news when it comes to daily minimums.
While jet card providers are holding tight on rates, there is good news regarding daily minimums: They are down 3.8% from Q1 2024.
Daily minimums are the minimum daily charge and impact flights under the minimum.
For example, if your program has a 90-minute daily minimum and you take a 45-minute flight, and it’s your only flight, you get charged the minimum—90 minutes.
Those 45-minute or 60-minute flights often replace a five- or six-hour drive or connecting through an airline hub.
Overall daily minimums dropped to 86.3 minutes from 89.7 minutes at the end of Q1 2024.
At the peak, daily minimums increased to 103.3 minutes in Q4 2021.
Daily minimums dropped across the board, with light, midsize, and super-midsize jet daily minimums all below their pre-Covid averages.
| DAILY MINIMUMS (minutes) | Dec-19 | Dec-20 | Dec-21 | Dec-22 | Dec-23 | March-24 | 24-Jun |
| Light | 78.1 | 79.5 | 87.9 | 75.8 | 71.9 | 72.9 | 66.7 |
| Midsize | 83.7 | 84.1 | 95.8 | 83.0 | 79.7 | 79.0 | 76.1 |
| Super Midsize | 95.7 | 95.3 | 111.5 | 94.1 | 96.5 | 95.1 | 91.9 |
| Large | 101.4 | 98.6 | 125.6 | 110.2 | 121.4 | 121.3 | 119.8 |
| Overall | 86.2 | 85.4 | 103.3 | 94.7 | 89.4 | 89.7 | 86.3 |
Source: Private Jet Card Comparisons
While light jet hourly rates may have edged up, at 66.7 minutes, the average daily minimums dropped 8.5% from Q1 2023 and are 14.6% below December 2019.
In other words, each minute the daily minimum for lights drops, the price of flights at or under that daily minimum drops by $133.21.
| DAILY MINIMUMS (minutes) | Change from March 24 | Change from Dec 23 | Change from Dec 22 | Change from Dec. 21 | Change from Dec. 20 | Change from Dec. 19 |
| Light | -8.5% | -7.2% | -12.0% | -24.1% | -16.1% | -14.6% |
| Midsize | -3.7% | -4.5% | -8.3% | -20.6% | -9.5% | -9.1% |
| Super Midsize | -3.4% | -4.8% | -2.3% | -17.6% | -3.6% | -4.0% |
| Large | -1.2% | -1.3% | 8.7% | -4.6% | 21.5% | 18.1% |
| Overall | -3.8% | -3.5% | -8.9% | -16.5% | 1.1% | 0.1% |
Source: Private Jet Card Comparisons
Midsize jets saw a 3.7% decline in the latest quarter, while super-midsize daily minimums decreased 3.4%.
Another small positive is the continued drop in peak days.
The average number of peak days dropped to 46.4 dates at the end of Q2 2024, down from 47.5 and below the average of 55.7 dates in Q4 of 2022.
| PEAK DAYS (hours) | Dec-19 | Dec-20 | Dec-21 | Dec-22 | Dec-23 | March-24 | 24-Jun |
| Overall | 22.8 | 24.4 | 39.3 | 55.7 | 47.4 | 47.5 | 46.4 |
Source: Private Jet Card Comparisons
Still, the number of peak days is more than double the 22.8 peak days seen in Q4 of 2019 – 103.5% higher.
| PEAK DAYS (hours) | Change from March 24 | Change from Dec 23 | Change from Dec 22 | Change from Dec. 21 | Change from Dec. 20 | Change from Dec. 19 |
| Overall | -2.3% | -2.1% | -16.6% | 18.1% | 90.2% | 103.5% |
Source: Private Jet Card Comparisons
Of course, averages are averages, so what matters is your program or the ones you are considering.
While not all providers have surcharges on peak days, some range up to 50%.
Also, the ability to move your departure and longer windows to book and cancel can make it seem like you are flying on a different program.
Flexibility to book those fixed or capped rates is constrained by the minimum callout – lead time to book.
| CALL OUTS (hours) | Dec-19 | Dec-20 | Dec-21 | Dec-22 | Dec-23 | March-24 | 24-Jun |
| Overall | 23.2 | 29.0 | 55.9 | 64.7 | 69.3 | 69.2 | 64.5 |
Source: Private Jet Card Comparisons
Again, a bit of good news.
The average non-peak callout is now 64.5 hours, down from 69.2 hours at the end of Q1 2024.
Still, that compares to 23.2 hours back in 2019 before Covid.
Operators are seeing increased costs via pilot and maintenance tech salaries; they face higher costs for parts, and aircraft stay grounded for longer due to supply chain issues.
At the same time, with demand down, everyone is hunting for business.
That’s good for buyers.
More than ever, it makes sense to speak to companies whose programs fit your needs, as free hours and flight credits are again part of the equation.
I also recommend signing up for providers’ email lists.
While jet card companies are good at issuing press releases about celebrity chefs and sponsorships, providers like to offer discounts via emails or one-on-one negotiations.
It’s also always worth asking if retention or new-member specials exist.
Keep in mind your flying matters.
Efficient flying between two airports or cities with lots of private jet activity, such as New York to South Florida, means less provider repositioning expense.
Therefore, if you are doing those types of flights, you could perhaps get extra free flight time, credits, or membership fee waivers.
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