Reply #6: I know I'll get flamed for this... [View All]

[bdab1973]

But having flown in the corporate jet world (as a pilot of Learjet 35s) it is often cheaper for corporations to send a dozen execs to attend a business meeting on a private jet than pay for airline tickets. Have you priced business class tickets bought at the last minute to Europe or Asia? It's staggering, and with that, you don't get any flexibility on when you travel, and you wind up having to pay extra for other travel costs associated with flying to destinations that may not be as close to your meeting site as smaller airports.

In many cases, flying corporate jets costs the same or in some cases less than flying a bunch of execs on the airlines. Business aircraft are business tools, they are usually NOT used for simple luxury flights to island destinations. The organizations I've worked with have dispatch personnel that use software that maximizes the efficiency of the airplane's use. They are generally not frivolous investments. And if you expect large international banking companies like Citi to conduct business without traveling, then you are naive.

Bottom line, not owning a jet in many cases is actually more expensive than operating one. That's why so many businesses have jets, because they make travel sense, not because it's cool. You would really be surprised to know how many businesses operate aircraft...thousands of corporations big and small operate their own aircraft from little single-engine Cessnas all the way to the big Gulfstreams. The big jets aren't bought for excess...they are bought for their range, to conduct international business.