Unlike Commercial Airlines, Private Charters Are There When You Need Them

When travelling, there is the age old question of when is the best time to book a flight. Is there an algorithm or a magic formula that determines the best time to book? Are flights cheaper if they’re booked earlier? What factors contribute to fluctuating prices? What’s the best month, day, or date to book a flight?

Both commercial and private charter plane service companies are met with this concern time and time again. Travellers are more cautious with their spending, especially as commercial flights continue to rise. However, do the same rules apply to commercial flights as charter services? If so, what’s the formula?

The formula for booking commercial flights:

Fifty-four days ahead of your departure is the magic number to book in advance for commercial flights, according to a 2015 study conducted by CheapAir. This is the prefered number of days for commercial airlines, but even so, multiple factors can still cause flight costs to fluctuate. Unfortunately, two and a half months doesn’t leave much room for spontaneity or to accommodate your last minute business meeting.

The golden rule with commercial travel is to attempt to book at least a week in advance if you’re factoring in prices and availability of flights. There are certain days, such as Sunday, where a return flight gets charged a premium, and certain days are typically more expensive to fly on.

This research suggested that, on average, a ticket costs about $200 more if you book within 7 days of your desired departure date.

Why is this the case? When booking seats on a commercial airline, they can implement surge pricing because there is a limited number of seats available, and the availability doesn’t meet the demand.

That’s why charter flights are the hassle free option.

Lucky for you, you don’t always need to book more than a week in advance with private charter flights in Canada. This may be the case with commercial airlines, but the formula’s a bit different with charter plane services.

Private jet charter companies don’t have this kind of an algorithm. They exist to make your life and travel plans more convenient. It’s a 24-hour industry that gets you where you need to go around the clock. Unlike commercial airports, which do not run around the clock, private jet charter companies are a 24-hour industry focused on getting you where you need to go.

If you or your business team are travelling last minute and landing at an odd hour to make it in time for a business meeting, you can rest assured that you can arrive or depart at whatever time suits your schedule. It’s up to the charter service company to coordinate with an airport that will accommodate your hours. In the United States alone, private charter flights utilize a network of 5,000 airports, whereas commercial flights reach only 550 airports, according to Forbes.

With private plane rentals, fees don’t increase if you book later.

Corporate travel charter services emerged to facilitate urgent travel, so rates aren’t meant to take advantage of you as a customer if your business requires urgent travel. The private charter industry isn’t impacted by those last-minute price hikes affecting the commercial airline industry. Therefore, the day or time you wish to travel, whether its for business or pleasure, doesn’t impact pricing in the traditional way that it does with commercial travel.

What factors influence prices with private plane charter services?

Aircraft rate and availability: When you’re flying on a private plane rental, the aircraft size, class, and type are the only factors that determine costs. Hourly rates do vary based on the type of aircraft, but the base prices of our jets do not change based on demand. Like commercial airlines, charter plane services do not have surge pricing. Regardless of how late you book, as long as there is an aircraft available, prices are determined by the same formula:

The base cost along with the hourly rate for the aircraft multiplied by the total flight time of the trip. This formula never changes. The base rates for aircrafts do not vary but additional fees can influence the total cost of your private charter services.

Aircraft location: Depending on the airport you land at, their hours, landing fees, segment fees and customs fees (for international trips) may vary. However, these costs aren’t directly impacted by how soon or last minute you book a flight so these don’t determine whether booking last minute will actually cost you more.

Some airports may have a higher fee on weekends or late nights for storing the aircraft, but due to the extensive list of airports our aircrafts can land at, we can worry about those details for you. A trusted private charter service will ensure you will get where you need to be, when you need to be there, without changing their prices for additional profit.

With private plane charter services, a last minute flight doesn’t mean you pay a premium.

Flightpath does not have a premium for last minute flights like commercial airlines. If a personal emergency or business calls in another city, and we have an aircraft available, we will ensure that you arrive safe and sound. Booking in advance only means that you have greater choices in selecting from our various aircrafts.

The business aviation industry generates $150 billion in annual economic activity. This growing industry is based on trust, customized services and convenient travel. Flightpath aligns itself with these core industry values. Our technology and expertise, with over a decade’s worth of experience in the industry, allow us to factor in the considerations and provide you the travel solutions that suit you, regardless of how soon or last minute you book.

Financial transparency is one of the core values at Flightpath. If you’re looking for an air charter service that understands corporate and business travel, contact our travel managers to plan your next trip.

March 31st, 2016