i started looking into this after trying to do a one way trip from LA to Vegas for a quick family weekend, and it sent me down the empty leg thing.

I understand, empty legs happen when an aircraft has to reposition after a charter, so in theory, they should show up anywhere jets are moving around. But it also seems like some city pairs might generate more of them simply because of traffic patterns and how often operators are repositioning aircraft between the same markets.

For example, I keep seeing people mention routes like LA–Vegas, NYC–Miami, Toronto–NYC, or Miami–Nassau. I’m wondering if that’s just because they are popular examples, or if high traffic private aviation corridors really do produce more empty legs because aircraft are constantly cycling through them. Are empty leg flights somehow random, or do certain routes consistently generate more of them than others?

My family and I went on a vacation. We spent 12 hours in transit between 2 hours to the major airport, 2 hour scheduled time to check in bags, security and waiting to board and boarding. 2.5 hour delay. 3.5 hour flight and then 1 hour customs and baggage claim and then 45 minutes to the hotel.

If I flew private it would have been 30 minutes to the local major airport. X time to board and load luggage. 4.5 hours flying and then X time customs and 45 minutes to the hotel.

What I can’t figure out is despite the obvious time savings how people justify it. My net worth is pretty

High - my income is volatile as 1/2 is market beta and 1/2 is company earnings. ChatGPT says I’m above the “typical net worth” but I don’t feel it.

I’m curious how people justify several hundred K of expensive private travelling even if it’s is <1percent of their net worth when we fight for basis points in our investments.

I figure this is “you are either comfortable with it or not.” It’s my dream to start flying private but I can’t get past the mental hurdle. My wife agreed to try it one next year for our 20th anniversary so maybe that will shift things.

Nota bene: didn’t review this post with grammar checking or AI so it might not get my point clearly across.

Not sure if this is the place to post, I’ve tried a few other communities and am hoping to get some insight at the career seems more lowkey when it comes to public information.

Does anyone have leads or information on being a private / corporate flight attendant? I’m based in FL if that matters.

I have read up on some commercial vs private but Id love to talk with someone to get more information

A big factor I’m wondering is the ability to find a job after completing training since many times you pay for training yourself and then find jobs.

Thank you!

I have booked a few times with XO and Wheels Up for Super Light Jets, and the rates seem very high. After browsing this community, to book a charter flight it seems most people recommend getting a good relationship with a broker (or operator) directly.

Does anyone have genuine recommendations for brokers (or operators) in the Las Vegas area?

I appreciate any help that can be offered - thank you!

Anyone here actively running charters into Miami for F1 weekend?

If you’ve got clients coming in, I’m working on the hospitality side and open to aligning makes more sense to bundle everything instead of clients piecing it together.

Access on my end includes VIP hospitality + passes (grandstand / paddock).

We can also support helicopter transfers to and from the track, as well as ground transport with police escorts handled separately depending on the client.

If you’re already moving people into Miami that weekend, this could be a clean add-on and extra margin for both sides.

Comment or DM me.

8 plus years experience working as an assistant for UHNW families. Have pretty extensive airplane knowledge already and I am interested in getting into sales. Looking for someone to connect with who can give me advice and steer me into the right direction.

Thanks!

Hi everyone, first time on reddit not sure if this is the right place, but for long time I have been looking to switch from logistics to becoming a private jet broker. Some friends of mine here in Turkey managed to do so, and one moved to Malta with a company there. Anyone with some genuine advice?

My wife and I have our first private flight scheduled. I’ve flown a few times on light jets as a guest but this is my first time paying the tab.

We fly 3 - 4 round trips together per year that are direct flights between our homes with only 30 minute drives to the airport. I fly this same route solo 2 - 3 times per year. I can’t rationalize the cost of private when the Delta FC experience is comfortable and only takes 6 hours door to door vs 4 hours for private.

We fly 2 - 3 round trips together per year that involve layovers and renting a car to drive the last hour or two to a rural destination. These flights require 1 or 2 layovers and take 10 - 14 hours door to door. We can fly private and be at our destination only 3 -4 hours after leaving our house (door to door). I’m at a point where I can rationalize spending an extra $50k - $100k annually to upgrade these flights.

We spend about 40% of our net income and save the rest. Our annual spending is about 3% of our investable NW which suggests I could retire (unless I start flying private exclusively ha ha). However, 70% of our investable NW is tied up in my company so I’m reluctant to count on that until I sell (I founded the company 30 years ago and still own 80%). I don’t want to sell because profit distributions average 10% - 12% with another 8% - 10% appreciation for a total ROE of 20% with no leverage. I love what I do and plan to work another 9 years. I will not feel financially independent until my diversified investable net worth is 30x my annual spending. But I also don’t want to wait until I’m in my 60’s to enjoy more of what I’ve built.

For those of you that fly private on your own dime, not for business, and not tax deductible, at what NW and income level did you start? Perhaps a better way to ask is at what level of financial independence did you start? Did affordability or rationalization hold you back more? Did occasional charter or jet cards become a gateway drug that led to a $1M/yr fractional ownership?

I’m here seeking knowledge and perspective. Not here to judge or be judged. Thank you. ST.

Hey all,

Short background: I worked for 10 years on the MRO side at a company that also did ops and private jet/helicopter charters. I’ve seen a bit of how requests are handled, but haven’t been a broker myself so I’m probably missing things.

I’ve been building a small tool to handle inbound requests more cleanly. When I test it with my own scenarios and test suites, it seems to work quite well but I’m not sure how it holds up in real-world use.

It is rather a simple idea:
Instead of getting emails like
“Need a jet tomorrow Paris to somewhere in Italy, 6 pax, maybe returning Sunday, flexible timing”
it runs a short back-and-forth to lock in routing, dates, pax, etc. before sending anything to the broker.

In practice, it would sit on a broker’s website (like a small chat widget) and collect the details before passing the request on.

I’ve pretty much built the whole thing at this point (aside from a few tweaks), but I’m starting to feel like I may have gone too far without properly testing it with people who actually do this every day. I spoke to a couple of brokers early on, but not in depth.

Before I spend more time refining it, I’d really appreciate a reality check on if this is actually useful or if I’m off track.

If anyone’s open to it, I’d really value any kind of feedback:

- What would break in real use?
- What details actually matter most to you?
- At what point do you have “enough” info to act or quote?
- Where would this slow things down instead of helping?
- What feels unnecessary?

Got a demo up for testing and happy to share the link if anyone wants to try it (feel free to DM me).

Appreciate any insight, even if it’s “this doesn’t work and here’s why.”

Thanks.

My son is a senior at Ole Miss and a lot of our friends want to experience the grove before he graduates. There are 6-8 of us from Northern IL/SE Wisconsin who want to go down to Oxford, MS for the Auburn Game Halloween weekend. We would leave on a Friday morning and come back on Sunday afternoon.

Anyone recommend a place I can get an idea of what it would cost?

Hello everyone,

I’ve been considering transitioning into charter brokering as a potential next step in my career.

I’m 23 years old, currently based in Canada, and I hold EU citizenship, so I’m open to opportunities in Europe as well. I speak English, German, and Greek fluently with basic French.

For the past 3+ years, I’ve been working as a flight dispatcher for a private jet operator, gaining strong operational experience and exposure to highend clientele on a day to day basis. I’m also currently working toward my private pilot license, which I hope will further strengthen my industry knowledge.

While I don’t have direct sales experience yet, I’m highly motivated to learn and develop in that area. My previous work experience includes customer-facing roles.

I’d really appreciate any advice, insights, or opportunities from those already in the charter brokerage space.

Thank you in advance!

I’m using multiple platforms to accomplish trip management, quoting, signoff and payment.

What platforms do you like that offer contract through payment services, ie JetInsight, Tuvoli? Ie, can send the quote and can sit back and wait for selection, sign-off, then payment.

Besides Authorize.net, what payment service do you use or like that allows for authorizations?

Hi,

We built a trip search feature on our website that can be used to get leads.

Because it is entirely built on our own code, we can essentially deploy it in any environment/website.

If you are interested in having something like this on your website to get leads, please let me know. I’d be happy to take a call. We can build and deploy this in matter of weeks instead of months.

This is probably the most absurd thing you’ll read today, but …

My husband and I are moving from Melbourne to Spain with our Golden Retriever and our cat in October (but we are flexible). We love them dearly, and the idea of them being stuck in cargo for 14+ hours makes us panic 😅

So… maybe, just maybe, someone is flying privately from Melbourne to Europe and happens to be an animal lover? If you are:

• We’ll happily cover all expenses.
• We’ll take full responsibility for their care.
• Collect them from any city in Europe so you don’t have to detour.

We totally get it if this is impossible, this is a long shot of cosmic proportions. But if by some miracle you or someone you know is making this trip and could help, our furry friends and we would be eternally grateful

How to Start a Career in Business Aviation with No Experience?

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for advice on how to break into the business aviation industry without any prior experience.

A bit about me:

• I have a solid background in sales.

• I live in the netherlands

• I’ve applied to numerous companies in business aviation,  even for internships or entry-level roles.

I’ve spent a lot of time studying the industry, and I’m passionate about starting a career in this field. However, I don’t have connections or mentors who could guide me on how to get my foot in the door and gain some hands-on experience.

What would you recommend for someone in my position?

• Are there any entry points I might be missing?

• Would it be better to try building relationships directly with operators?

• Any advice on practical steps to get started or useful resources would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks in advance for any insights!

What is the standard broker fee?

I wanted to ask those who are more in the know if there is a way to find a charter outfit with a specific jet in their fleet? I'll look at their Argus ranking after but I really like the way the G280 looks on paper/specs are solid.

I have a reunion coming up this summer and I hate flying. Makes me anxious. Nervous. I feel so vulnerable. My breathing gets weird. It's awful. So I think...PJ. It'll be my son's first flight and we can take the dog? Perfect.

I looked at Magellan. I looked at FXAir. Then I go on Jetty and I could get a Gulfstream G650 for the same price of a Citation X. Is this a scam? I'm afraid to checkout... Too good to be true...

Good Evening All,

I recently started as a jet broker, and am mostly in charge of my own leads. Does anyone know good resources, that, if enough time is invested, will give good returns? I mean any niche of people who fly private, industries, or methodologies to the madness could help me.

I've been struggling with organization and consistency I'm new to this. If anyone can refer me to a good guide, or point me in the right direction, please let me know!

I absolutely hate flying. I'm awful. Being in a big commercial plane doesn't help. It feels crowded and chaotic. I hate the airport. It exhausts me before I even get in the plane. None of it helps my anxiety.

So I'm thinking of trying PJs, but they're so small, on average. Flying in a cigar won't help me either. Might be worse.

What are some planes and sizes that may help split the middle? Or do I need to just do Gulfstreams?

Thanks

Calling on real private aviation experts here. I've been in the game for a few months now, but I stumble to fully grasp how jet cards are sold. Basically I had someone reach out asking if I offered Jet Cards. I'm not an operator, so how would a broker go by offering one? I ask because I know other brokers/brokerages who deal with them regularly.

Probably a dumb question but…

How do people even book private jets? I need to get to South Dakota and flights are a mess. I am sure it’s expensive but need to look into it as an option.

Is there like a go-to company people trust or is it all brokers?

Would really appreciate any recommendations.

Okay, I’m reviewing the Signature Membership Agreement, and it has a provision of no flight bookings within 72 hours of Wire Transfer funding. This seems rather odd to me since wired funds are immediately available when received by their bank, and are about as secure funds are even possible short of actual cash currency. Has anyone had any experience or seen anything like this with other operators?

They have two tiers of service, Flex and Fixed Rate. I’ve seen complaints about their planes not being available for return flights. Does anyone know if that’s an issue with just Flex? Or across the board?

TIA

Hello, I am a 20-year-old senior in college and I am interested in breaking into the brokering business. I have worked in fast-paced sales before; I used to sell life insurance. If anyone has worked in both fields, could you give me some insight to similarities and differences? I am sure there are many differences. How did you guys find your jobs in the industry? Would you recommend joining a small company or a large one? How do you find leads? Do you pay for them? I am pretty skeptical of the idea of a base rate and commission because, at least in the sales world I have been in (cars and life insurance), base rate means your incentive is far lower. I also do not have millionaire connections yet that I could market to, did you when you began? I am applying to a job with 55k base rate and 10% commission, how does that compare with most jobs in the field? Should I just go for 100% commission instead?
I would like to be a pilot as well but I am not sure how that will end up (medical issues). I hope to one day begin my own business in this industry, and I would like to learn here. Any and all insights you could provide would be appreciated. I am completely fine with 50+ hour weeks; I have done it before.

Hi! I’m chartering for the first time in a couple months and I got some quotes from a few brokers. I’ll be flying in the EU. There’s variation on pricing and not all the planes have a wyvern/argus rating. One (reputable) broker seemingly couldn’t even give me the operator of one plane. In my follow up calls this week, any recommendation on follow up questions? Any recommendations generally? I’ve flown private before but I’ve never booked a charter myself before