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What’s it like to fly privately with Jetfly?

It was a Thursday morning and I walked the short distance from my hotel to Denham airfield in Buckinghamshire. Opposite the appropriately named Biggles cafe is the Jetfly lounge where I met my fellow co-passengers just before 8am for a private flight to Frankfurt. By 8.20am we were up in the air, looking down on the M25 and able to pick out various iconic London landmarks such as the Millennium Dome and the Shard in the distance. Walk to airfield This is the beauty of private air travel. No queueing, no passport check (I had submitted a scan of my passport in advance), no body scan, no baggage check, no waiting around… or, to put it more simply, no hassle. Forget the glass of Champagne, the comfortable seat, the extra legroom… without doubt the main perk that comes with flying privately is the time you save and the convenience of the whole ‘airport’ experience. The M25 from above Jetfly do have a lounge at Denham but this is rarely used with most owners using their service simply driving straight to the plane and boarding. Jetfly lounge To date Jetfly have a fleet of 19 Pilatus PC-12 aircraft, a single-engine turboprop plane and each with typically seven co-owners, and they are buying approximately two of these planes each year to meet growing demand. This is the biggest aircraft you’ll see at Denham; it is a plane that oozes character and comfort but its key advantage is that it can land on short runways because it is able to fly at very low speeds.  This holds huge appeal because it means you can land in far more locations than many other modes of private aviation, enabling passengers to land nearer their final destination. Using smaller airports and airfields can also be much more competitive – landing at Denham costs just £60, for instance, whereas just 30 miles away at Farnborough Airport the fee is closer to £700. Pilatus PC-12 Returning to the Pilatus PC-12… this jet can hold a total of 10 people (pilot, co-pilot and 8 passengers), although the one we travelled in was configured to hold just 6 passengers with two seats facing backwards to make the whole experience a little more sociable. Inside the Pilatus PC-12 On board, after a brief safety announcement from the co-pilot and an equally short take-off, we were presented with a beautiful tray of fresh fruit and offered a newspaper for the journey. The journey time to Frankfurt from Denham on a Pilatus PC-12 is 1 hour 45 minutes. With the new Pilatus PC-24, which Jetfly will be flying from 2017, that time will be closer to an hour. Fruit aboard the Pilatus PC-12 So, before we knew it, we were making our descent into Frankfurt with the rather grey shades of London substituted by the much bluer skies of Frankfurt. Outskirts of Frankfurt Our landing at Frankfurt Egelsbach Airport was a very comfortable one thanks to the skills of our ever-smiling German pilot and his French co-pilot. Our pilot and co-pilot I travelled with just onesmall hand luggage item for this trip but, for those with cases, luggage was retrieved from the rear of the plane. This also served as a good opportunity to get a side-view of the inside of the aircraft. Pilatus PC-12 seat Our arrival was just as hassle-free as our departure, with airport staff meeting us off the plane to check our passports and a vehicle driving onto the runway and to the steps of the plane to take us to our first stop – a vineyard on the outskirts of Frankfurt. Passport check at Frankfurt Awaiting transport at Frankfurt For the return to Denham the next day, I was utterly spoilt – it happened to my birthday and a bottle of fizz had very kindly been secretly arranged… as if flying with Jetfly wasn’t already luxurious enough! Champagne Flying with Jetfly had indeed been a pleasure and the Pilatus PC-12 was very comfortable indeed.  It should be stressed that this isn’t a plane you can charter – you have to own or co-own one so that is quite a unique selling point and one that opens up a whole myriad of opportunities. Jetfly are therefore not a one-stop solution for most owners but instead an additional option for them, giving passengers the flexibility that they can’t get from many private jet operators. Cockpit Disclosure: This trip was sponsored by Jetfly in conjunction with Breeze by lebua – the latest addition to Frankfurt’s restaurant scene.

Paul Johnson

Paul Johnson is Editor of A Luxury Travel Blog and has worked in the travel industry for more than 30 years. He is Winner of the Innovations in Travel ‘Best Travel Influencer’ Award from WIRED magazine. In addition to other awards, the blog has also been voted “one of the world’s best travel blogs” and “best for luxury” by The Daily Telegraph.

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11 Comments

  1. I used to love to fly; however, as airlines became more crowded and difficult to travel in, that loved has withered away. However, flying by private air travel makes it seem exciting again. I will have to look into Jetfly and possibly fly with them if I am in the area.

  2. If the budget is there traveling by private jet can be amazing! Especially if you land at the airport and have a luxury sedan and driver waiting.

  3. Hi Marco – the way it works with Jetfly is that you co-own a plane that you can then use. Contact Jetfly directly and ask for Jonathan and I’m sure he’ll be able to help you out… kind regards, Paul

  4. Sounds like the way to go for speed and convenience! I love the fresh fruit and newspapers, that’s a sweet touch, and you getting some fizz for your birthday, what a lovely surprise. I imagine you could take your own snacks and books on board for longer trips but it sounds like the flight time will be much shorter in recent times if they’re using the new PC-24. If only I had the money…

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