Why Unity Jets isn't offering guaranteed rates

While more operators and brokers are launching jet card programs with fixed or capped hourly rates and guaranteed availability, Unity Jets won’t be joining.

However, it is offering a flight credit bonus through the end of 2025.

CEO and Founder Kevin Diemar says that while he has considered a guaranteed-rate solution over the years, he believes dynamic pricing solutions align with what the Miami-based private jet charter brokerage does best.

“Our clients typically want specific aircraft types, specific vintages, operators, or sometimes cabin configurations,” Diemar tells Private Jet Card Comparisons.

He adds, “Most guaranteed rate jet cards guarantee a cabin category. The only guarantee is a light jet, a midsize jet, a super-midsize jet,” Diemar says.

He continues, “Everyone knows within a category there are big differences.”

Diemar says clients using dynamic pricing enable Unity Jets to meet its customers where they want.

For example, on transcontinental flights, Citation Xs offer low pricing.

At the same time, customers who want a stand-up cabin or a more premium experience can choose from Challengers to large-cabin Gulfstreams, he says.

Broker Vs. Operator

As to the perception that if you are booking flights on an ad hoc basis, it makes sense to go directly to an operator, Diemar says that’s not the case.

“Having a good broker is like having a good financial advisor, a trusted accountant, or an attorney. You need to have somebody you can call and get good advice,” he says.

What’s more, a broker with scale typically has key operators it regularly uses.

Clients benefit from both the savings Unity negotiates with operators and passes along, as well as the volume that comes with their broker being an important customer for operators.

He says the leverage a broker with a good reputation has with operators comes into play when something goes wrong.

“Brokers that have a good reputation with operators get preferential treatment from operators,” he says.

He says building a profile with an operator is challenging for an individual consumer if the operator doesn’t offer a guaranteed program.

Diemar says in sourcing flights, operators don’t always have availability when the client wants; however, through their preferred operators, good brokers can always find an aircraft that fits the mission.

This saves the time individuals would have spent bouncing between operators to gather quotes when their preferred operator isn’t available.

For operators, most individual clients don’t have enough annual volume to rank alongside wholesale accounts in terms of revenue.

Diemar says the broker-operator relationship is more than just volume.

“We are working with operators day-in, day-out at all levels, from sales to operations, to the executives, so we are used to working collaboratively to fix issues, everything from air traffic control to airport restrictions, all of the things that come up on a day-to-day basis in private aviation,” Diemar continues.

Diemar says brokers also operate like general contractors, checking on catering to ensure it has been delivered and the order is correct, ground transport to ensure it is on-site and at the right FBOs, and, of course, the operator, making sure the airplane is being repositioned in a timely manner.

READ: 16 Reasons To Use A Private Jet Charter Broker

Quality Approach

Diemar notes he and his co-founders worked at NetJets before launching the company in 2011.

He says the philosophy has always been to provide the fractional operator’s high level of service on a trip-by-trip basis.

The average tenure of the Unity Jets team is over 12 years.

Diemar says the company has had stable year-over-year growth over its history.

“We are selective about who we bring on board. We are not looking for people with just a large book of business. There must be a cultural fit into the way we do things,” he says.

Diemar says the profile of clients who get the most significant benefits from dynamic pricing is those in major metro markets in the Northeast, South Florida, Texas, and California, as well as those flying to or from key Colorado resorts.

While dynamic pricing is higher during peak travel periods, Diemar points out that many jet card programs also charge additional surcharges and have more restrictions.

Diemar says the key is that dynamic pricing enables customers to still get their preferred aircraft type and vintage even on the high-demand dates.

Diemar says guaranteed-rate jet cards are often cost-effective for flights between secondary destinations or shorter flights.

He says it’s not unusual for clients to have multiple solutions.

Mechanical Recovery Insurance

One frustration of booking via dynamic pricing—the extra cost of recovery flights—has now been largely solved, Diemar says.

Recovery flights are when the operator cancels.

The broker then has to go out and get new price quotes.

The customer may have to pay the difference between the original quote and the new pricing.

At the last minute, it can often be a 50% premium.

However, it’s now possible to mitigate that risk via insurance that covers mechanical cancellations.

Unity Jets works with Charter Flight Support, which covers up to twice the original quote for the recovery flight at a 2-4% premium, based on various factors.

Diemar says Unity Jets offers the option, which he says is particularly useful for inefficient flights or during high-demand periods.

Unity Jets continues to offer a dynamic pricing membership for customers who don’t want to transfer funds trip by trip.

Through the end of the year, anyone who deposits at least $100,000 will receive a $5,000 flight credit.

Uber For Private Jets

Despite the rise of AI and the continued emphasis in the media on instant booking and Uber-like private-jet functionality, Diemar says he believes those products will end up being more niche than many think.

“The UHNWs who are the bread and butter for private aviation have multiple professional advisors. They have lawyers, accountants, and financial planners. They use travel advisors instead of booking at Hotels.com, they have interior decorators, they value the professional services that companies like Unity Jets provide, and I don’t see that changing,” he says.