Demand for private charter and fractional flying has remained steady over the past year while a large majority of those who started flying privately during the pandemic are sticking with it, according to Private Jet Card Comparisons’ latest Jet Card Report. The fourth annual report surveyed more than 1,000 users of fractional ownership, jet cards, membership offerings, on-demand charter, and jet-sharing programs, providing a deep-dive into respondents’ private aircraft flying habits and purchase decisions.
The report says respondents expect to fly 42.7 hours privately in the next 12 months, which is almost unchanged from 42.4 hours in the 2023 survey. Meanwhile, 95.5% of respondents who started flying privately since the pandemic are still doing so.
Of respondents who are just now considering private aviation, 54.1% say airline and airport delays and negative experiences are leading them to consider flying privately. Increased prices continue to be the top reason respondents are considering changing providers, up from 55.3% last year to 64.5% in this year’s survey. However, flight delays, changes, and/or cancelations as a reason to switch private aircraft providers dropped from 37.4% to 24.3%, according to the report.
Private Jet Card Comparisons said this research is critical for companies that sell services to jet card, membership, and fractional providers, in addition to business aviation investors and analysts.