Commentary » Blogs

11 Films for Your Flight
May 1, 2013
Robert De Niro in The King of Comedy
Last month in this space, I suggested some reading matter for the road. Now it’s time to talk about films for your flight.
6 Books Worth Packing
March 28, 2013
The second annual BJT Book of Lists—our follow-up to last year’s highly successful feature—won’t be published until June, but I can’t wait to get started. So here, in no particular order, are three novels and three nonfiction works that I’d recommend to anyone looking for books to pack for a trip. 
Bizav and Obama: Time for a Reality Check
February 28, 2013
President Obama has proposed eliminating a tax break for business jet buyers.
If I had to sum up the benefits of business jets in just one word, I might pick “convenience.” According to Wikipedia, “convenient procedures, products and services are those intended to increase ease in accessibility, save resources (such as time, effort and energy) and decrease frustration.”
When Seconds Count (Or Do They?)
January 29, 2013
On a business jet, seconds count—or do they?
“No traditional business jet will take you closer to the speed of sound,” promises Gulfstream in an announcement about its recently certified G650, which boasts a maximum velocity of Mach 0.925.
Singing the Legalese Blues
January 2, 2013
When John Adams proclaimed, “I believe in a government of laws, not of men,” he couldn’t have imagined just how many laws—or how much legal mumbo-jumbo—his descendants would have to endure. In his day, after all, people didn’t do things like put an empty sheet at the end of the Constitution labeled, “This page intentionally left blank.”     
An Open Letter to the Editors
December 4, 2012
S. Claus, a BJT reader, wants us to help him buy a bizliner.
This month, I’m turning my blog space over to the Business Jet Traveler reader who submitted the following letter.—Jeff Burger An Open Letter to the Editors of Business Jet Traveler:
Is President Obama Really Calling the Bizav Industry "Bad"?
October 18, 2012
President Obama
Virtually every industry and profession in America enjoys the backing of an association and its lobbyists.
A Trip to Jet Depot
October 1, 2012
The year is 2050 and you can buy a jet the same way you'd buy a wrench at Home Depot.
For several years, you’ve been able to book charter flights on the Internet and now, as we’ve reported in Business Jet Traveler, there’s a retail store in London–The Jet Business–where you can actually walk in off the street and buy an airplane.  
The Bizav Boys' Club
September 13, 2012
The business aviation field has been called a "boys' club," and with good reason. Illustration by John T. Lewis.
In his recent Business Jet Traveler interview with Elite Aviation owner Chris Holifield, journalist Matt Thurber noted that “you don’t see a lot of women-owned aviation businesses.” Bizav, he said, is “a boys’ club.” It sure is, and so is the rest of the aviation world.
A Little Perspective
July 31, 2012
A Wells Fargo stagecoach
These days, everybody complains about the airlines–rotten food, TSA hassles, cramped seating, long delays, lost luggage. And while private jet travelers are a decidedly happier lot, they’ve been known to offer the occasional gripe as well–the charter flight lacked sufficient baggage space, the catering service overcharged, the FBO disappointed.

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Quote/Unquote

“Let me be straight with you. What I'd rather have is an airplane. We just had a third kid. I don't like flying commercial. I like to take my family to Hawaii. When I go east, I'd like to have pilots I know. ”

-Steve Jobs