If you are pursuing private aviation, and cannot afford a private jet then you have two options open to you: booking charter or jet time-share ownership. Before making a decision about which option is best for you should ask yourself the following questions:

• How much time (how many hours) to do you spend in the air each year?
• On average, how many other people usually accompany you on your trip?
• How frequently do you travel?
• Are your destinations local, international or overseas?
• Do you require a special aircraft to suit your business needs (such as gear for landing on gravel strips or a snow crew?)
• What is my budget for transportation?

If you fly fewer than 50 hours a year than a charter airplane service makes the best economic sense for you.  However, some fractional jet set companies can offer you a short-term pre-paid lease that offers many of the same benefits of the fractional ownership. There are three types of charter services on the market; managed aircraft charter companies that you can access directly, brokers that give you access to aircraft managed by other companies and companies on the Internet who act as agents for brokers and carriers.  Between these three types of sellers you should be able to find a chartered jet service that is perfect for you. However this type of arrangement is only viable if you are not planning on flying that much during a given year.

If you need between 50 and 400 hours of flying time per year than fractional jet ownership, often also called jet time sharing or time share jet services is probably the most economical solution for you. Time-share jet ownership is also advantageous if you require more than one aircraft a day or find yourself departing from multiple locations. You simply save money on maintenance, personal, pilots, stewardesses, mechanics and everything.  You also save money as there are obviously no individual flights to pay for.

Owning your own aircraft only makes sense if you are flying more than 400 hours annually. However, even if you are flying that many hours or more, fractional jet ownership might still be your most cost-effective option if any of the following statements apply to you:

• I cannot wait for maintenance or for planes that are out of service.
• I sometimes or even often need more than one aircraft on one day.
• My flights need to originate from multiple locations.
• The number of passengers I fly varies from trip to trip.
• I stay for multiple days at some locations.
• I already own an aircraft but it often flies empty so it is not cost effective for me.

If you have a positive answer to all of these then you will do best with the jet time-share arrangement.  Executive jet time-sharing is the best option for you, as it will cost you the least money.