Why You Need to Know How to Charter a Plane

Business Aviation Education from Aargus Air Charter                                                                                  Volume 1, Post 23

Have you ever had a morning like this?

At 10:45 AM, I checked with the airlines to see if I could fly four people from Grand Rapids non-stop tomorrow morning for 9:00 meetings, then back home anytime after 2:00 PM. I compared two cities, one that is a non-stop and the other that always requires a connection.

Cincinnati Trip

• The airlines: The best the scheduled airlines could manage was two seats on the 7:20 flight arriving Cincinnati at 8:41. You won’t make a 9:00 meeting from the airport in Covington, KY except by pure dumb luck; but maybe your client will push back the meeting to 9:30 for you. Round-trip airfare per person was $1,141. The non-stop return flight gets home at 9:11 PM.

• Aargus Air Charter: A turbo-prop was available to carry all four passengers to and from Cincinnati for a total of $5,534. Compares favorably to the airline’s last minute full-fare coach cost of $4,564 (assuming four seats had been available.) You’d depart Grand Rapids at 7:15 AM arriving downtown Lunken Airport at 8:30 AM in plenty of time for your 9:00 Meeting. The flight home departs six minutes after you get to the airport and lands in Grand Rapids 75 minutes later.

Pittsburgh Trip

• The airlines: The earliest arrival in Pittsburgh departs Grand Rapids at 5:45 AM and gets to PIT at 9:37. And there are only 2 seats left, not the four you need. Price per person was $1,001. The best return leaves PIT at 3:10 PM arriving Grand Rapids at 5:53 PM. The outbound flight connects in Detroit; the return connects in Cleveland.

• Aargus Air Charter: A turbo-prop was available to carry all four passengers to and from Pittsburgh non-stop for a total of $5,800 or $1,450 each. Compares favorably to the airline’s last minute full-fare coach ticket of $4,004 if four seats had been available.

In my research, I couldn’t get any people to a meeting on time tomorrow morning using the airlines. My only choices were send them today and stay overnight; or try to get the meeting moved back to later in the morning. And unless some folks traveled today, I couldn’t get four people to either city at all tomorrow morning.

And that’s why you need to know how to charter a plane!

Call Dan Dunn at Aargus Air Charter with all your questions and to arrange your trips.

(616) 956-7600 or (616) 822-0099