Founded

2007

Headquarters

Thermal, California

Key People

Jared Fox, CEO

Phone Number

(800) 381-JETS

Website

Desert Jet

Desert Jet

Desert Jet provides aircraft charter, maintenance, and management services from its FBO at Jaqueline Cochran Regional Airport near Palm Springs, California.    

Former music teacher and corporate pilot Denise Wilson founded the company in 2007 to provide aircraft sales and management services. She added an FAA Part 135 certificate in 2009 and began using client aircraft, mostly Cessna Citation Encores and Citation Vs, for revenue-producing charter operations. That year, the company also earned International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO) certification. 

After receiving operating authority from Transport Canada for charter flights to and from Canada and overflight authority granted by Customs and Border Protection for southern U.S. border crossings, the company began adding aircraft to its charter certificate. Having incorporated charter booking capability on its website and Facebook page in 2010, Desert Jet claims to have been the first air charter company to offer online booking through a social-media platform. 

Its revenues grew quickly, landing Desert Jet as number 296 on the Inc. 500 list of the fastest-growing U.S.-based privately owned companies in 2011; it subsequently appeared on the top 500 or 5,000 list for the next four years. Meanwhile, Desert Jet earned the NBAA Commercial Business Flying Safety Award each year from 2011 to 2014 while also receiving Wyvern Wingman and ARGUS Platinum ratings. 

In 2013, Wilson launched Desert Jet Maintenance, an FAA Part 145 repair station at Cochran Regional Airport that also offers aircraft interior and exterior detailing, aircraft on ground (AOG) service, and avionics installation. Two years later, Wilson opened Desert Jet Center to offer FBO services. Operating in temporary facilities, the company became the first FBO in the Palm Springs area to earn the IS-BAH registration; that designation followed IS-BAO Stage III certification in 2016 and renewal of its ARGUS and Wyvern ratings. 

Desert Jet Center opened a state-of-the-art 32,500-square-foot facility at Cochran Regional in 2019, featuring the only air-conditioned hangar large enough to accommodate aircraft such as the Gulfstream G650 and Bombardier Global 7000 in the Palm Springs area.

Palm Springs businessman James McCool, a pilot and retired Charles Schwab executive, purchased a minority interest in Desert Jet Holdings—the parent company of Desert Jet, Desert Jet Maintenance, and Desert Jet Center—in 2018. Less than a year later, the company hired certified aviation manager Jared Fox as CEO and Wilson transitioned to the role of chairman of the board. She sold her remaining interest to McCool in 2020.