The Game Changer: Private Travel. More First-Timers & One Way Trips.
Private air travel is booming– flexible business, quick responses to health concerns, and the ability to allow flexible, one-way self-contained travel–many companies are seeing increases in first-time inquiries and spikes in overall sales.
On average according to Forbes, there is a 71% increase in inquiries from people who have never flown private before. Most people who used to only fly on commercial airlines are making the switch…or at least thinking about it. Commercial airlines have been canceled and/or reduced the number of flights, which increases those many appealing thoughts when it comes to private travel. Avoiding busy airports. being able to stay with your family or friends, and traveling together to a socially distanced location.
One-way travel accounted for 70% of trips made during Covid so far, now that has increased by up to 20%. If not sure about a return people may increasingly want the flexibility of not having to decide when they will come back–many don’t know when they will have to go back to school or back into the office. People are also booking in a much shorter time frame; within three days from the start of the trip, which wasn’t the case before, and private jet companies like Vincent Jets are happy to welcome this flexibility with open arms.
Outside of new destinations, clients are moving to and from second homes and many are “very focused on exploring North America” with Utah, Montana, and Colorado high on the list–places that are more remote and mountainous. If they are traveling abroad, it’s to the Caribbean beach destinations. Finally, people are seeking to fly privately, because they are able to access airports that they weren’t able to travel to get to commercially. Clearly, there are advantages too, in that private aircraft flights are often smaller and can access private airfields which commercial planes cannot, meaning all new access to different places in shorter time periods, such as mountainous areas, or places with shorter runways and better access to sought-after places.
Private air travel has been in a position to respond well to health, personal space, and hygiene concerns. With new health and safety protocols introduced to serve their fleet, which includes rigorous aircraft decontamination before and after each flight as well as an additional preventative aircraft interior treatment with an antimicrobial barrier, private jet partnerships are working together to help people stay stress-free and at ease. Many have been able to afford to fly privately, but they weren’t. Now they are discovering the safety aspect, and it’s a complete game-changer.