A card buys hours in advance at an agreed rate, with availability promised at short notice. It is a good answer to a particular problem. Here is the problem it solves, and how to tell whether you have it.
In partnership with Harrods Aviation · Signature Aviation · SW Global
What they are
A jet card is a prepaid arrangement. You either buy a block of flying hours, commonly starting around twenty five, or place a sum on deposit that is drawn down as you fly. In return you get a rate per hour for an agreed size of aircraft, and a promise that an aircraft will be found if you give the required notice.
You are not buying a particular aeroplane. You are buying a category, so the aircraft that turns up on Tuesday may not be the one that took you on Friday. Nor are you buying a share of anything: the hours are a credit with the programme, and the flights are still flown by licensed commercial operators. We arrange cards and block hours in the same way we arrange every other charter, and we will tell you plainly if you would be better off without one.
How the market builds them
| Element | How it usually works | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| Hours or funds | Either a block of hours, often from twenty five upwards, or a deposit drawn down trip by trip. | Whether unused hours or funds are refundable, and on what notice |
| The rate | A rate per hour for one category of aircraft, fixed for the life of the card. | What the rate includes. Some cover positioning, landing and handling; others add them |
| Availability | An undertaking to find you an aircraft if you call by a set deadline, commonly somewhere between twelve hours and three days ahead. | The exact deadline, and what happens if the programme cannot deliver |
| Peak days | Busy dates are surcharged, excluded from the guarantee, or both. Ski weeks, half terms and the major sporting fixtures are the usual ones. | The published list of peak days, and how many there are |
| Billing | Normally on occupied flying time, with a daily minimum and a taxi allowance added. | The daily minimum, which is what makes short hops expensive |
| Service area | A defined region within which the rate and the guarantee apply, typically Europe or a country. | What is charged for trips beyond it, which is where costs climb |
| Expiry | Hours or funds usually lapse after a period, often a year or two. | How long you really have, and whether the clock can be paused |
| Your money | The balance sits with the programme until you fly it. | Who holds it, how it is protected, and what happens if the provider fails |
This describes how jet card programmes are generally structured across the market. Any arrangement we put in place for you is set out in writing before you commit to anything.
A card can earn its place
The benefit is rarely the rate. It is the removal of friction.
On-demand is probably better
For most people who fly a handful of times a year, a card is money sitting still.
Before you sign anything
Programmes vary widely, and the differences are in the clauses rather than the headline rate. These are the ones that catch people out.
How we help
Tell us the trips you actually took last year, not the ones you meant to. Routes, group sizes and how late they were confirmed.
We price that same year as on-demand charter and against the card arrangements that fit it, on the same assumptions, so the two figures can be compared.
If a card wins, we go through the clauses above with you and negotiate what can be negotiated before anything is signed.
You call us, not a call centre. The same person handles the aircraft and the cars, and we keep a running note of the hours you have left.
Which category?
That makes the choice of category the most important decision in the arrangement. If your trips vary in size, ask what it costs to move up or down before you settle on one.
Request a quote
Send us the trips you took over the last twelve months, or the ones you expect to take. We will come back with an honest comparison between buying hours and paying trip by trip. Nothing is booked or charged online.
Prefer to talk? +44 2030 048300 or WhatsApp, at any hour.
Questions people ask
Not usually, hour for hour. What you buy is a fixed rate, less negotiation and a promise of availability at short notice. If the certainty is worth more to you than the difference, it is a good deal. If not, it is not.
A minimum number of flying hours you are billed for on any day you fly, whether or not you use them. It is the main reason short hops cost more than the hourly rate suggests.
Most programmes surcharge peak days, require longer notice, or lift the availability guarantee altogether. Ask for the list of peak dates before you sign, and check it against your own calendar.
Sometimes, at a different rate, and often not at all. Tell us if you expect to need helicopter transfers or group charter and we will look for an arrangement that covers them.
That depends on the category, the hours and the terms, and it moves with the market. See what charter costs for how the figures are built, and ask us for a comparison on your own trips.
One contact, wherever you are
