The Benefits of Flying Private for Family Travel

While private jet travel may often be viewed as a luxury for the rich and famous, industry terminology tells a different story. Aircraft manufacturers have “business jet” divisions. Airports that serve private jet travelers are classified as “business” (as opposed to “commercial”) locations. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration provides “business jet” data and reports. Essentially, the “business” modifier is understood as shorthand for “private” in the aviation realm.

However, in recent years, more and more private jet trips are made not with business colleagues, but with families – spouses, children, other relatives and/or pets. “Business” jets aren’t just for business anymore, and the trend does not seem to be reversing. If you’re wondering exactly how flying private can benefit you for trips with your nearest and dearest, read on.

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More Families in the Air

To be clear, the entities that track private jet travel don’t typically break trips down into business or non-business. However, we know that private jet travel has increased worldwide over the last half-decade or so. According to business aviation data firm WingX, the number of flights on business aircraft globally in 2023 was 14.6 percent higher than in pre-pandemic 2019 and 51.2 percent higher than in 2020. Activity in the U.S. specifically was about 17 percent higher than in 2019 and 58 percent higher than in 2020.

As per industry insiders, family travel is driving at least part of that increase. “Before the COVID-19 pandemic, we did mostly business travel. During the last few years, though, trips with families represent the majority of private jet travel trips that we book,” says Jason Firestone, VP of Sales of charter broker PRVT Inc.

While pandemic travel restrictions and remote work and schooling may have been a major factor in driving up private jet travel with families, the trend has persisted even as things got back to “normal.” “The pattern during the pandemic was that people would vacation longer as they worked remotely. Now, though, it’s back to pre-pandemic patterns,” Firestone says.

No Lines, Less Stress

One reason flying private with families has taken off is the convenience factor. While commercial air travel may be less expensive than private jet travel, it’s famously and notoriously inconvenient even when flights leave on time. Getting where you want to go when you want to go not infrequently involves early or late flight times, long lines and extensive waits – unpleasant for an adult, but infinitely more so for a young child.

Flying private is very different. No TSA lines in which you grasp a cranky toddler in one arm while trying to remove your shoes with the other hand. No long waits for flights. No harried airline employees juggling demands from hundreds of passengers. Instead, you can show up shortly before your flight is due to take off, climb on board and go. Baby napping longer than usual? Often, you can delay your takeoff to accommodate.

The private jet travel experience is especially helpful with children needing significant accommodations, be they babies, toddlers or older children with particular needs. Kids aren’t crammed into a tiny space and kept from moving around. Specific foods can be provided, free from any allergens that might ruin a trip. While baggage allowances aren’t unlimited, private jets don’t have the same types of carry-on restrictions as commercial airlines, leaving more room for toys and other distractions in the cabin.

And flying private offers a less security-dominated experience that’s more akin to the glory days of air travel. “All the kids seem to love it,” Firestone says. “The cockpit’s open, so you can walk up while they’re flying and say hi to the pilots.”

Extended Adventures

While flying private is more convenient for traveling with your nuclear family, it’s even more useful when journeying with your extended clan. “We’ve had families traveling from NYC to California that include people living in Chicago. They can do a stop in an in-between city, drop some people off and keep going,” says Laura Ince, Trip Coordinator at PRVT Inc. “You can alter the itinerary a little bit if it helps make things more convenient.”

Flying private with a large group also helps bring the cost factor down per person, especially for those who would otherwise fly first class. “The multi-generational travel is definitely a factor because the group size is bigger,” says Julian Asher, founder and managing director of Timeless Africa, a travel specialist focusing on eco-friendly travel to remote wilderness destinations.

Many of the trips Asher arranges are to locations without many – if any – commercial aircraft alternatives, leaving private air transport as more or less the only option available. However, even with trips to more well-traveled destinations, flying private offers definite advantages when venturing outside of your home country.

“If you’re traveling internationally and you want to leave a day early, you’re not charged a cancellation fee. There’s a lot of flexibility there,” Firestone points out. “Traveling internationally, you go through separate customs, which is huge in terms of convenience. Those things are really beneficial when traveling with a family.”

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At the Border

In addition, flying private can make dealing with passport and visa matters much simpler. Rather than working through a large commercial airline handling countless passengers at a time, private jet travelers can consult with the charter broker, charter operator or other entity that arranged their specific flight and rely on them to assist in communication with government entities regulating border crossings.

This can be especially helpful in complicated situations. Samir Seth, a technology commercialization and strategy expert who has worked in corporate executive roles where private jets were used at times, is a frequent flyer on commercial airlines in his personal life. A few years ago, he, his spouse and their children were flying back from London to Austin, Texas. Unfortunately, his Platinum status with United Airlines did not prove useful when challenges arose.

“Our children had dual U.S. and German passports and traveled to Europe on their German passports. When traveling back, we found out that their U.S. passports had expired, but we thought we could still fly using their German passports and showing their U.S. birth certificates,” Seth recounts.

Unfortunately, United chose to cancel all four tickets instead, freeing up space on an over-booked flight. The family was able to fly back the next day after obtaining emergency passports at the U.S. embassy, but the experience illustrated for Seth the disadvantages of commercial air travel. “If we were flying private, we could have just come in without any hassle,” he says. “It gives you a little leeway when things aren’t perfect.”

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Not Just for Kids

If your family consists of four-legged creatures, flying private is even more helpful. Despite grumblings from online discussion forums, no major commercial airline has banned children from flights (yet). Pets, however, are another matter. Most airlines now have tight restrictions on the size of pets that can fly in the cabin – you’re pretty much limited to cats or small dogs who can fit in carriers placed under seats.

While U.S. airlines are required to transport legitimate service dogs, emotional support animals are no longer accommodated. Many airlines won’t take larger animals in cargo anymore due to liability concerns – and many owners don’t want to risk exposing their pets to the risks of a cargo hold.

For more and more pet owners, flying private seems like the only option. Those looking to hold down costs often go through Facebook groups to arrange shared charters for one-time trips such as relocations. A few specialty airlines such as K9 Jets provide “pet-friendly” private jet charters on a scheduled basis. And, of course, some pet devotees charter their own flights to pick up new animal family members or to make travel comfortable for the ones they already have.

Quality Time

Private jet travel with your family does offer one potential disadvantage – it may make the hassles of airline travel seem unthinkable going forward. Commercial jets won’t wait for you while you drive back home to retrieve a forgotten lovey or let a small child run around for a few more moments to get the wiggles out or take a beloved pet for one last walk to stretch their legs. And, with private jet travel, you minimize the stressful parts of flying, while maximizing fun times with your loved ones.

“Once you experience going private once, you wonder how you ever go back to flying commercial,” Firestone says. “You really cut down on time. It’s a great way to travel.”