The JetMembership program from Luxury Aircraft Solutions enables users to book live hard quotes for flights in the Continental 48 U.S. states.
Users and members of Luxury Aircraft Solutions‘ JetMembership on-demand booking product now receive instant booking hard quotes.
The Long Island, New York, and Florida-based broker is transitioning clients from its traditional fixed-rate jet card program to its dynamic pricing JetMembership product, initially launched in 2018.
However, its JetMembership product previously only provided estimated quotes.
Those estimated quotes then needed to be confirmed with hard quotes based on actual pricing from operators.
Co-Managing Partners Daniel Hirschhorn (pictured left) and Joseph Catanese say instant booking is now available for flights in the Continental U.S.
That means you get hard quotes when you enter your flight request and can book and pay in real time.
To get started, you go to JetMembership.com.
You enter the departure and destination airport, the number of passengers, and the departure time and click search.
Pricing is by category—turboprop, light, midsize, super-midsize, and large cabin—so the instant booking isn’t specific to an aircraft type.
That can still be done on a request basis, which is part of how the company wants the service positioned (see above).
However, instant booking means you can now book an aircraft on the spot without going back and forth.
By the same token, you can still request a quote if you have specific needs.
That could include wanting a specific aircraft type, configuration, or amenities or if you are shopping for the lowest prices.
The website specifies the types of aircraft included in each category for instant booking, so you know what you could get.
Most category programs only use example aircraft in that category.
However, the division of categories is worth reviewing as it doesn’t completely follow industry standards.
For example, a Phenom 300 is categorized as a midsize jet.
After you pay, Luxury Aircraft Solutions has to find an airplane since they are a broker.
In some cases, they will lose money if the price they sell you the charter is less than what it costs them to buy it.
Instant booking includes the typical best efforts guaranteed rate jet cards usually provide to find a recovery aircraft at the original flight price instead of the more standard requote of ad hoc charters.
Pricing is based on the estimated flight time.
However, according to the contract, if your flight takes longer, you will be liable for pass-through upcharges from the operator, essentially actual flight times.
Hirschhorn says it is meant to cover events like diversions, so clients only pay the initially quoted price outside of an abnormal situation.
Extra charges for catering, WiFi, deicing, and such apply.
There are standard cancelation terms, although operator terms take precedence.
• 25% of the charter price if canceled following signature.
• 50% of the charter price if canceled less than 14 days before departure.
• 75% of the charter price if canceled less than seven days before departure.
• 100% of the charter price if canceled less than 72 hours before departure and all one-way or multi-leg charters not returning to the departure airport.
Since the operator isn’t disclosed at the time of payment, the FAA’s Part 295 rules covering brokers entitle you to a full refund at the time of operator disclosure, regardless.
JetMembership fills a gap between the traditional back-and-worth of ad hoc charter and the frictionless booking of jet cards, which can be measured in minutes instead of hours or days.
READ: 16 Reasons To Use A Private Jet Charter Broker
There are three ways to book, including just visiting the website without joining.
Part of the ptich is you don’t have to put down six-figure deposits.
Premium Members pay $499 for initiation and then $299 per month.
Elite Members pay $1,750 to join and then $899 per month.
According to the partners, member pricing averages 7.5-to-15% less than non-member pricing.
Premium and Elite Members get a $100 per month Door Dash food credit for catering.
Deliveries are made directly to the FBO.
Elite members have up to four lead passengers and don’t pay credit card fees for their quote request bookings.
Pricing for all instant bookings includes credit card fees as part of the price.
The executives say more partners and benefits for the two memberships are coming.
Users also can easily upload information on passengers and email or text itineraries, making flight management easier.
Instant booking with guaranteed pricing for ad hoc flights is not new to Luxury Aircraft Solutions.
However, it’s limited.
Most non-programmatic pricing you see are just quote estimates.
That means to get a confirmed price, you have to wait for a hard quote, read the contract terms of each quote, and then respond.
If you don’t respond promptly, the quoted aircraft will no longer be available.
The time spent booking ad hoc charters and not knowing what you will pay on that flight often causes flyers to eschew what sometimes seems like a game of whack-a-mole for guaranteed-rate jet cards.
Since JetMembership uses dynamic pricing, you will not know what flights cost until you search for a flight.
The prime benefits are fast booking and not having to fund a six-figure jet card.
Wheels Up and Vista Global’s XO offer similar instant booking on their websites, leveraging their large fleets.
Camber was offering something similar before Vista Global acquired it in 2022.
2021 start-up AirBook One offers similar instant booking.
Sellers of instant-booking ad hoc charter flights, like fixed or capped-rate jet cards, bet they can buy the flights (or fly you on their fleet) at less than you paid.
The Luxury Aircraft Solutions execs say they have over a decade of data on actual flight costs from tens of thousands of operator quotes.
With inflation, concerns about global stability, JetSuite’s failure in 2020, Jet It’s closure last year, and the current situation with Volato, Cantonese, and Hirschhorn believe their product’s timing is good.
In other words, they think consumers are becoming more hesitant to fund $250,000 jet card accounts.
The proof, of course, will be in the pricing.
Is it competitive with fixed/capped rate jet cards?
Is it competitive with the two other brokers you usually call?
If you are paying more, are the tradeoffs worth it?
Looking at several examples, prices for flights between 90 minutes and three hours up and down the East Coast and even in the Midwest were quite attractive.
On the other hand, transcontinental flights and short hops were significantly more expensive than you could find by calling a broker or joining a relevant jet card.
Hirschhorn and Cantonese say that’s why the user experience includes the opportunity to book instantly or request a quote, especially if you are price shopping.
READ: What happens to your jet card and private jet membership deposits?
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