Forty people, ninety bags, one aircraft.
Squads, touring parties, delegations and whole departments. When a group is too large for a business jet, an airliner can be chartered for it, and everything on the ground has to be timed to match.
- 20+years in private travel
- Ownedchauffeur fleet in London and Manchester, a trusted global network beyond
- 24/7operations desk, one contact
- 3services on one itinerary: car, jet and yacht
In partnership with Harrods Aviation · Signature Aviation · SW Global
What group charter is
The same idea, a much bigger aeroplane
Group charter works exactly like any other charter. You hire an entire aircraft and its crew for your journey, and it goes when you are ready. The only difference is the size of the aircraft: above about sixteen passengers you move out of business jets and into regional jets and airliners, flown by operators who specialise in them.
We arrange the aircraft, the handling at both ends and the ground transport, and one person looks after all of it. In London and Manchester the cars are ours; elsewhere they are arranged through operators we know, to the same brief.
Sizing it
Which aircraft for which group
| Group size | What is usually arranged | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 9 | A midsize or super-midsize business jet | Comfortable, quick to turn round, and able to use the smaller airports. See midsize jets |
| 10 to 16 | A heavy or ultra-long-range business jet | Stand-up cabin, a flight attendant and real hold space. See heavy jets |
| 16 to 50 | A corporate-configured regional jet or a VIP airliner | Executive layouts carry far fewer than the airline version of the same aircraft |
| 50 to 130 | A narrow-body airliner: an Embraer 190, an Airbus A319 or A320, or a Boeing 737 | A proper hold, and a runway and handling requirement that rules out the smallest airfields |
| 130 and above | A larger narrow-body or a wide-body | Usually a season, a tour or a whole-company movement. Lead time matters more than anything else |
Categories and typical numbers only. The real answer depends on the route, the runway at each end, the baggage and the date, and we confirm it for your trip.
The thing people forget
Baggage decides it, not seats
Groups are almost never limited by the number of seats. They are limited by what the group is carrying and by how heavy the whole load is.
- A squad travels with kit, medical bags, ice baths, cases of equipment and personal luggage, which can fill a hold before the seats are full
- A touring party brings flight cases, instruments and staging, often with awkward dimensions rather than awkward weight
- Golf bags, skis, bicycles, shooting equipment and flight cases all need declaring in advance, and some need paperwork
- Every aircraft has a maximum weight for take off, and on a long sector fuel competes with payload. Tell us the real weights early
- If the numbers do not work, two aircraft is sometimes the honest answer, and we will say so rather than squeeze you in
Who books it
The groups we move most
Sports squads
Players, staff and kit
Fixture-driven dates, late kick-off changes and a great deal of equipment. Arrival and departure timings usually matter more than the flight itself.
Touring parties
Artists, crew and production
Multi-city runs on consecutive nights, with the crew often moving separately from the principals.
Corporate groups
Off-sites, incentives and roadshows
Whole teams to one place on one day, or a board and its advisers through several cities.
How it works
From headcount to wheels up
- 01
The brief
Numbers, dates, route, and an honest estimate of baggage. If some of the party travels separately, say so now.
- 02
Options
Suitable aircraft with the price of each, the cabin layout, the hold, and which airports they can realistically use.
- 03
The manifest
Full passenger details as they appear on passports, collected once and checked. For large groups this is the part that takes the time.
- 04
The movement
Cars and coaches timed to the aircraft at both ends, a single point of contact on the day, and a plan for the party that is running late.
Where groups fly from
Airports and onward links
London departure points
Outside London
The ground half
An aircraft is easy. Forty people are not
Most group movements go wrong on the ground rather than in the air. Thirty people do not all arrive at the terminal together, someone forgets a passport, and the kit lorry is stuck on the M25 while the crew's duty clock runs.
So we stage the vehicles rather than send them, put a named person at the terminal with the manifest in hand, keep a list of who is actually in which car, and agree in advance what happens if two of the party are missing at the cut-off. At larger airports the private terminal cannot always absorb a big group, so we plan the route through the building with the handling agent beforehand.
Request a quote
Tell us the numbers
How many people, how much they are carrying, where from and where to, and on what dates. That is enough for us to come back with real options. Nothing is booked or charged online.
Prefer to talk? +44 2030 048300 or WhatsApp, at any hour.
Questions people ask
About group charter
How much notice do you need for a large group?
More than for a business jet. Airliners and their crews are a smaller pool, and the manifest alone takes time to assemble. Tell us as soon as the dates exist, even if the numbers are still moving. Short notice is sometimes possible: see last-minute charter.
Can names be changed after booking?
Usually yes, up to a deadline set by the operator and the authorities at each end, and sometimes with a fee. Tell us early which names are provisional so we can build the deadline into the plan.
Can you handle the cars as well?
Yes. Our own chauffeurs cover London and Manchester, a trusted global network covers everywhere else, and for larger parties we use several vehicles timed to the aircraft. For very large movements ask us about coaches and we will confirm what is available for your dates.
Is it cheaper per person than flying commercially?
For a big group on a route the airlines serve well, usually not. The case for charter is time, control of the schedule and keeping the party together, which is often worth more than the fare. See what charter costs.
Can we fly into a small airport?
It depends on the aircraft. Business jets reach almost anywhere; an airliner needs the runway, the parking and the handling to match. We check it for both ends before we quote.
