Training for Private Jet Charters

One year and $5000 will get you behind the wheel of a private jet charter. It’s cheaper than a car if you think about it!! Drew Steketee, president of Be A Pilot program, which began in 1997, even offers a $49 introductory flight lesson just to give newcomers the opportunity to see if flying a private jet plane charter really is all it's cracked up to be.

Will they cut the mustard or faint once flying through the sky? It’s a lot different being a passenger, that’s for sure. Concentration, technical skill, precision, and grace under pressure are but a few needed qualities for success as a charter jet pilot.

About 34,000 potential jet charter pilots request certificates for Steketee’s $49 flight lesson each year, and interest has grown by close to five percent in the past year.

Be A Pilot surveys indicate those interested in flying lessons intend to use their aircraft for business charter travel(20 percent) or recreational pleasure (80 percent).

Since September 11, Chris Lawson, director of aviation at the Lewis University Airport states, “the business jet charters market has increased mostly because people are frustrated by the long lines (at major airports).”

The other reason for increased jet charter traffic is that business travelers are hiring more private flights. “It’s been a huge benefit to general aviation that the airlines are (cutting flights and) squeezing more people on the planes,” Wes Sanders says. He owns Chicago-based Sebis Direct and flies a jet charter twice a month for business.
“I prefer to fly myself, particularly when headed to destinations that are not readily served by the airlines, such as Madison, Wis., and Akron, Ohio.”

The smaller cities in rural areas make up the close to 4,000 private charter airports. So while it may cost a bit more to charter your own plane, most CEOs find they prefer the extra prestige that comes with pulling up to a private jet charter landing pad and hopping off a plane – whether they’re flying the plane themselves or have hired a someone to do it. Nowadays jet charter flights are a dominant source of the market worldwide.