FAQ

Why Choose Charter?

Flying by charter differs from scheduled aviation in many ways, but from the point of view of the customer it can be summarized in three words: efficiency, privacy and flexibility

You may be a corporate travel planner trying to get eight executives from Rome to Athens as safely and with as little downtime as possible. You may be trying to lift a critically ill patient from one hospital to another. Or you may just be trying to get your family from Athens to Crete as swiftly and comfortably as possible. Whatever your priorities, charter air travel gives you the freedom to organize the trip around your needs.

Catering

Catered meals are the most common amenity on charter flights of more than an hour. Some of the better-equipped and larger jets can accommodate on-board cooking. Aircraft smaller than ten-seat capacity are not equipped to handle this. Advance coordination of this service will be necessary for anything much more complicated than drinks and pretzels or coffee and doughnuts. But you "own" the aircraft while you have it, so you are entitled to request something special.

An operator or broker can help you to coordinate with a knowledgeable in-flight caterer

The most important precaution to bear in mind is that bringing food onto an airplane is not another form of take-out. Because several hours can elapse between preparation, transportation to the aircraft, re-heating, and service at cruising altitude, meals treated like ordinary take-out can spoil and endanger the health of passengers and crew.

An operator or broker can help you to coordinate with a knowledgeable in-flight caterer, who can provide a meal of the highest taste and quality safely. Make sure that they are aware of any dietary restrictions. If you're picking up food from your favorite restaurant, let them know if you won't be eating the food right away so the chef can plan and package your meal appropriately.

Savvy in-flight caterers can also supply the services of event planners. If your family or business party is traveling around a holiday or celebratory event, ask your caterer for some ways to make the trip part of the festivities. Birthday cakes, holiday decorations and special activities can all be ordered ahead and ready for your trip. With some creative planning, your holiday celebration doesn't start when you get to your destination, but as soon as you step on-board your charter flight.

more info: Air Chef, Canonica

Ground Transportation

If you're flying into an unfamiliar or new airport, give some thought to ground transportation. "I'll meet you at the airport" is often a welcome gesture from the host in your destination city, and is probably the best solution when you're arriving at a new airport. If that isn't possible, every town has a taxi service, but you probably won't find a line of yellow cabs waiting for the crowd at the airport. There isn't a crowd -that's the point. If one taxi will do the trick, a simple advance call from the air can usually coordinate a timely hand-off on the ground. A radio call from the air can save you time on the ground.

If you're traveling as a group, a limo might be best way to make a luxurious
virtue

The larger national limousine services have central reservation numbers, and like charter aircraft, they too can be positioned for the job. If you're traveling as a group, a limo might be best way to make a luxurious virtue of necessity and get everyone to the final destination in one vehicle. At metropolitan airports, the major national car rental companies usually provide shuttle services between general aviation terminals and the main car rental facility. Often your FBO can have cars brought to the terminal, but you should try to make your request in advance and coordinate it through your operator.

Pricing and Payment

The expense of air charter must be evaluated against the needs of your trip. How many passengers are going, and how does the cost compare to other forms of travel? What is the savings in time, lodging, ground transportation, and gained business opportunity? Air charter can bring all the advantages that air travel is supposed to offer- rapid transportation with real convenience and service. When you really have to be somewhere in a hurry, it is worth every penny.

Air charter can bring all the advantages that air travel is supposed to offer- rapid transportation with real convenience and service

Aircraft are usually chartered by the hour, with rates varying according to many factors. Hourly rates are figured against the time an aircraft is actually in the air. A strong tailwind, therefore, will lower the cost. Air traffic delays, holding patterns and en route deviations will increase it. Some operators and brokers, however, will charge based on a quotation that is fixed, and will not change, regardless of your actual flight time. Be sure to understand which method your charter professional will be using to quote and invoice you.

Many operators try to make their pricing more appealing by charging on a distance basis, against actual trip length. Some will qualify this length, however, by charging for trip length as extended by expected deviations. Since there is no way for a passenger to check this distance, it becomes an inaccurate form of pricing because the unit (i.e. mileage) cannot be measured.

Most unit pricing charges (hourly or distance based) relate to an operator's actual hourly expenses—aircraft lease, fuel, maintenance, crew wages, and his profit margin. Prices guaranteed in advance are like any other lump sum agreement: a bet on the part of the vendor that he can do the job within the sum quoted and still make some money. To the extent that the market will bear, a prudent operator will charge extra to give himself some margin. However, if you are willing to share the bet and accept his unit price terms, you may share the savings if the trip is quicker than expected. Or you may pay more if the trip is longer.