Tiger Woods flies around in a G550 (NetJets), the Google boys and Paul Allen use 757’s as their private jets, President Bush uses a 747 (Air Force One).  None of those planes were big enough for Saudi Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal.  Nope, the Prince has ordered the double-decker, brand new Airbus A380. 

This plane is HUGE.  Set up for regular passengers it can seat more than 800 passengers.  The way the Prince will configure it sounds like he expects to travel with 40-50 friends… in style!  The plane goes for $300 million and change.  That’s just the plane.  Then the Prince needs to get a designer to layout the inside so that it’s fit for oil royalty to spend long flights on board.  One challenge will be that there aren’t even that many airports in the world that can handle this plane!  So much for the ability to drop in on a tiny island.  The plane requires a long runway and special equipment to get passengers on and off. 

The purchase is actually an upgrade for the Prince who evidently felt cramped in the 747-400 he currently has.  The A380 has actually been a long time coming.  Airbus has been challenged to deliver the plane to customers that have ordered it.  In fact the Prince likely won’t take possession of his new flying palace for several years.

Here’s how you and I might see the A380:

Here’s how the Prince’s version might look:

What is an “empty-leg”? Simply, it’s when a private jet is flying empty in order to reposition.   Different than your car, which normally sits and patiently waits for you after using it, a jet needs to return home.  If your trip is short, then it may make sense for the jet to stay with you.  Just remember, that means two pilots need to stay with you as well.

The round trip conundrum is really one of the things that makes flying private so incredibly expensive.  People hear that jets cost about $4K per hour to operate.  So they figure that it’s a 3 hour flight Florida to NYC = $12K.  HOWEVER, not the plane has to GET HOME.  So really you’ll be paying for a round trip.  If your trip is short (3 maybe 4 days). It might pay to have the plane sit with you ($400-800 per night that it sits… remember your feeding and boarding two pilots and a jet.)  However in most cases the plane will need to go off and either fly home, or fly other customers.

Many “newbies” to flying private think they should be able to get one of the “empty -leg” or repositioning flights for a song.  While they can sometimes be as much as 30-40% off, they are inflexible since you have to travel on someone elses schedule.  And 30-40% off is STILL really expensive.  Here’s how the industry has decided to make this situation more efficient:

One-Ways: This is a price that gives a discount to the consumer if they are not going to need the return trip.  Basically when a broker or operator gives a one-way price, it will normally be about 25% less than their actual cost to fly both ways.  then, they go out and try to find someone to pay for the “empty-leg” at a savings of about 30-40%.  This actually allows a broker or operator to “double dip” by taking risk on the “back end” of a flight.  Sometimes this can work out really well for the consumer.  The key (like with most travel discounts) is to be flexible.

Some of the “flight programs” (Sentient, NetJets, Etc) build in this one-way pricing into their hourly rate models.  In some cases they make a ton of money, in others, they can lose a ton of money.  By charging the same hourly rate for a trip to somewhere they can fill the back end, vs.  somewhere the plane will certainly fly home empty, they are gambling.

SO, when you’re out there shopping for the best deal on either a program or a specific flight.  Remember, empty-legs are able to provide a decent discount, but you give up a ton in flexibility.  Looking for one-way prices can some times help keep the costs down too.  Just remember, the provider is trying to make money off the “back-end” of your trip.

If you have questions about empty-legs, feel free to email emptyleg@privatejetnetwork.com

Flight Options a fractional ownership operator has a new owner: Miami-based HIG Capital.  The company is planning on growing via ordering jets from Embraer that could total more than 10 in the next 10 years.

Flight Options is the second largest fractional operator behind NetJets.  their previous owners are the aircraft manufacturer Raytheon.  The deal should be done by the end of the year. Q3 2007 was the first quarter the company has made a profit, which is a challenge amongst all the fractioanl operators.  The company has been in business for ten years. 

“Over this period we have moved from being a company that lost 18¢ in every dollar to turning an operating profit and one that offered 13 fleet types with 23 different cockpit to four fleet types and four cockpits - Hawker 400XP, 850XP/900XP, Cessna Citation X and [Embraer] Legacy 600,” says Flight Options chief executive Michael Scheeringa.

“Our new owners share with us the same view about how we are going to grow,” he says. “We now have the best economic platform from which to develop and launch new products and grow Flight Options well in to the next decade.”

Flight Options will get into the on demand charter game on 12 November.  Without many details the company indicates it will offer a “one-stop shop” for current fractional or charter card customers.

Flight Options has 1400 shareowners that co-own the fleet of 130 aircraft.  Flight Options also recently started offering a business aircraft management program.  this will evidently compete with other operators looking to manage business aircraft.