The four ways to fly private
On-demand charter, a jet card, a fractional share or your own aircraft — each fits a different amount of flying. Here's how they compare, and how to find the point where one becomes cheaper than the next.
On-demand charter
Book an aircraft trip by trip, priced by the flight hour for the whole aircraft. No capital, no commitment — the most flexible way in, and the easiest to stop.
- No capital outlay or commitment
- Right-sized aircraft for each trip
- Nothing to sell when you're done
- Highest per-hour cost
- Availability and pricing vary with demand
- Less consistency in aircraft and crew
Jet card
Buy a block of hours at a capped hourly rate with guaranteed availability and fixed lead times. Predictable pricing and service without owning an asset.
- Fixed, capped hourly rate
- Guaranteed availability
- Simple — no ownership admin
- Capital tied up upfront
- Rates above fractional at higher usage
- Programme terms and peak-day rules vary
Fractional ownership
Buy a share of a specific aircraft (e.g. 1/16 to 1/2) with a monthly management fee and an occupied hourly rate. Consistent aircraft and crew, with a defined exit at term.
- Consistent aircraft, crew and service
- Lower entry than whole ownership
- Defined buy-back at end of term
- Capital + monthly + hourly costs
- Multi-year commitment
- Management and fuel surcharges apply
Whole-aircraft ownership
Own the aircraft outright (or financed) and control everything — configuration, crew, availability. The lowest marginal cost per hour at high utilisation, and it can be chartered out to offset costs.
- Lowest cost per hour at high usage
- Full control and availability
- Can offset costs via charter; potential tax benefits
- Largest capital and fixed costs
- You carry residual-value risk
- Management, crew and compliance to run
It comes down to annual hours
A rough guide to where each option tends to fit. Your real break-even depends on the aircraft, your charter rate, financing and how much you'd charter out — model it before you commit.
| Annual hours | Usually best | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Under 25 | On-demand charter | No fixed costs to spread; pay only when you fly |
| 25–50 | Jet card | Fixed rate + guaranteed availability without owning |
| 50–200 | Fractional share | Consistency and lower entry than whole ownership |
| 200+ | Whole-aircraft ownership | Fixed costs spread thin; lowest marginal cost per hour |
Run the numbers, free
Ways to fly private: FAQs
What's the cheapest way to fly private?
It depends entirely on how much you fly. For occasional trips (roughly under 25 hours a year), on-demand charter is usually cheapest because you carry no fixed costs. As hours rise, a jet card, then a fractional share, then whole-aircraft ownership each become more economical per hour — ownership has the lowest marginal cost per hour once you're flying a few hundred hours a year, because its large fixed costs spread over more flying. Model your own numbers with the charter and ownership calculators before deciding.
At how many hours does owning beat chartering?
As a rough industry rule of thumb, whole-aircraft ownership starts to make financial sense somewhere around 200–400 hours a year, with jet cards and fractional shares filling the middle ground between occasional charter and full ownership. The exact break-even depends on the aircraft, your charter rate, financing and how much you'd charter the aircraft out — which is exactly what the charter-vs-ownership calculator models.
What's the difference between a jet card and fractional ownership?
A jet card is prepaid hours at a fixed, capped rate — you buy access, not an asset, and there's nothing to sell at the end. Fractional ownership means you actually own a share of a specific aircraft, with a monthly management fee, an occupied hourly rate and a defined buy-back at the end of the term. Cards are simpler and lower-commitment; fractional gives more consistency and can be more economical at higher usage.
Can I offset the cost of owning by chartering it out?
Often, yes. Many owners place their aircraft with a management company that charters it to third parties when the owner isn't flying, offsetting some fixed and variable costs. It rarely makes the aircraft free, adds wear and scheduling constraints, and has tax and regulatory implications — but it can meaningfully reduce the net cost of ownership. The charter-vs-ownership calculator lets you model charter revenue against your own flying.
Not sure which route is right?
Tell us how you fly and we'll model charter, card, fractional and ownership against your real mission — independently, with the numbers to back the recommendation.