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On a recent rainy Friday afternoon, travelers Pia and Carsten Troll casually walked into the JSX private jet terminal at Miami International Airport. After storing their bags, the couple, dressed in athletic clothes, sat down to play with their two dogs.
There were no lines, crowded passengers and not one non-invasive security scanner.
Trolls are a growing number of regular travelers who board private jets for business or pleasure. They were traveling on the pet-friendly JSX flight to Westchester County, New York with their medium-sized dogs, Ivy and Oscar.
In the rapidly expanding world of private aviation, you don’t need to be on the Forbes list of the world’s richest people or break the bank to escape the flying masses.
A JSX flight on an Embraer ERJ-135 or ERJ-145 can carry up to 30 passengers. A JSX round-trip ticket from Miami to Westchester costs around $1,498 – not as much as flying Spirit Air, but comparable to business class or first class fares on commercial airlines.
In the year Private aviation companies like JSX, which launched in 2016 and will begin flying from Miami in April 2021, are reinventing South Florida’s flight path. Private aviation has become an increasingly accessible and attractive option for more everyday travelers, as fares for commercial flights have risen sharply in the past year since airlines took control of the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to Fortune Business Insights, the global private aviation market in 2018 It is valued at USD 25.87 billion in 2021 and is expected to be valued at USD 38.34 billion in 2029. In North America, the market will grow from USD 8.6 billion in 2020 to USD 9.23 billion in 2021.
At four private airports and terminals in South Florida – two private terminals at Miami International and private airports in Fort Lauderdale and Opa-locka – customers can enjoy VIP service at prices that rival first class and business class tickets from commercial airports.
With Miami International and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International busier than ever, private jet operators and passengers say it’s faster to check bags and go through security at the smaller private terminals at each airport. TIt has waiting areas and private jets – which typically carry more than 30 passengers, in the case of JSX – are much less crowded.
“Before the pandemic, we were growing fast because people were buying convenience,” said JSX CEO Alex Wilcox. “We’ve made semi-private aviation more convenient than a flight ad.”
Flying private or semi-private gives people more space and less stress. Gone is the rush of speed that comes with navigating the public entrances to major airports. Customers use private entrances to access their flights away from crowded parking lots and garages.
In the year According to a private jet card comparison of the busiest airports in 2022, five of the 25 busiest private jet airports in the country were in Palm Beach, Broward and Miami-Dade counties.
According to Kevin DeMar, CEO of Miami-based Unity Jets, private aviation and semi-private aviation differ in their offerings and business models. His company offers private charter flights that allow customers to pay for the service of an entire plane.
Unity does not use a subscription-based service or require people to pay for a certain amount of miles or flight hours, which some private and semi-private aviation companies choose to do.
“There’s no pressure to put money up front,” Diemar said. “We prefer to keep things simple.”
On semi-private flights, passengers purchase seats on planes that fly out of private airports and terminals, but share the flight with other salaried strangers.
Bernard Schwartz is the CEO of Fleet Club – a Miami Beach-based company that operates at three airports on the US West Coast and Hawaii and is the latest entrant into Miami’s private aviation space. Schwartz sees a demand for services in Miami as the number of high-income residents increases. Growing national interest among affluent travelers in Miami will give Fleet Club a strong foothold in its first East Coast flight to ski destination Vail, Colorado, beginning in November 2023.
Schwartz said the bill would lead to a profitable business and affordable prices for customers.
“Typically for most private flights, if it’s your own plane, it’s $11,000 to operate,” he said. “South Florida is the epicenter of private jet activity. The round trip flight on this route is eight hours. At $11,000 an hour, the cost is about $90,000. [Comparably] A business first class seat costs between $2,000 and $4,000. We sell at least 20 round trip memberships per year as an intermediate between travel options.
Construction contractor Kostas Remensnyder had never flown privately before the pandemic changed the world in March 2020. Remensnyder, a self-described “humble guy” who lives in northeast Ohio, now flies back and forth to work privately on construction projects in South Florida. Charter service.
Reamensnyder found himself taking private flights to meet guaranteed deadlines on projects and keep his clients happy.
“Everything is a cost-benefit analysis, especially when it comes to business,” he said. I spend $30,000 to $50,000 to bring in crew for a project. You can pay $10,000 in flying business versus $40,000 in private, he said.
But if project deadlines are missed, he added, “you could lose $10 million in business.”
Save time
Derek Miles started his assisted healthcare services company, CourMed, in Miami Beach around the same time JSX started flying out of Miami. Since then he has been flying JSX to his home in Dallas. With promo code JSX, Miles will get a discount by purchasing flight time in advance.
With a busy work schedule, Miles appreciates the time savings.
“I’m saving my time to get back to work and create value for CourMed and investors,” he said. “I’m on the air, making phone calls. I will continue to create value. For me, it’s about the extra money.
As a side benefit, he enjoys the opportunity to fly with other entrepreneurs and high-profile celebrities that he might never meet. The last time he flew JSX, fellow passenger Deion Sanders, Jr., a social media star, said he would create content for his NFL Hall of Famer father and college football coach Deion Sanders.
“I was on the flight with him. [two-time NFL champion] Von Miller to talk about the CourMed announcement. Talking to people and expanding my network is always my duty,” he said.
As CourMed grows, Miles will seek similar flights in other markets. He recently signed up with Blade, another private aviation company that offers helicopter service in New York City from West Palm Beach to New York City.
Shutts & Bowen attorney Paul Hechenberger, who used private jets for business in the past, has more than 30 years in the aviation industry and sees private aviation as an asset that has long been hidden from the public eye. Citing membership-based private aviation company Wheels Up as an example, he said he believes companies like his are helping to “democratize aviation.”
Now that more people are aware of the opportunity, Hechenberger said the new demand for private aviation created during the pandemic is here to stay.
“The use of private aviation by non-historic users has increased dramatically,” he said. “I don’t think it’s going to bottom out, but I think the market will level out because people aren’t worried about the people they’re counting on.”
As private aviation becomes more popular in South Florida, travelers say it’s expanding convenience, comfort and convenience for passengers — just as they want to keep their pets with them.
At Miami International’s JSX terminal, the trolls smiled as they rose from their seats and headed for the plane.
“Goodbye,” said Pia Troll as one of the leashed dogs ran forward.
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