Yesterday I wrote about how I ended up on a 2.5 hour flight on a Gulfstream IV. I went from an ordinary Monday night, to less than 18 hours later finding myself on a 14 seat private jet. With that out of the way, here’s the story of the actual experience, starting the night before…
Continue reading: Flying A Private Jet — The Flight Of My Life!
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Wow that looked awesome. Glad you got to have the experience and share it with us!
Glad you had such a great time, Lucky! I used to fly biz jets a lot in my corporate days and you recreated my first time perfectly. I will say there's one potential downside when you're flying for work and that's when you're on transcontinental trips with some of your co-workers. Oddly, I preferred sleeping with 300 strangers in biz class of a 747 then sleeping with four co-workers on the overnight to Europe in the biz jet. Not sure, but I felt more private with the strangers then my actual co-workers.
Then there was the time the CEO decided to give me my annual review on a flight from Bucharest to Los Angeles. That worried me because if it was a bad review I had no place to hide!
Glad you really enjoyed this!
so lucky, what about the seats i always thought they were worse than commercial airlines for long flights, i mean are they full lie flat? what about the noise is it noisier the plane?
Glad you got to experience something you liked so much.
So did you, at any point, sit in your seat and wiggle-waggle right and left and right and left, really hard, to see if you could make the plane move left and right? Yes, I'm nine years old, and I would have totally done that just to see.
@ miguel -- I was actually really surprised by how quiet the plane was. Even though I sat towards the back of the plane for most of the flight (where the engines are), it felt considerably quieter than most commercial aircraft I've been on.
The seats actually all convert into flat beds, so the plane has a sleeping capacity of six. The seats were really comfortable for sitting. The padding was amazing.
I flew a Gulfstream II from KY to Mexico at my last job. I didn't really realize how awesome this was until I started flying more commercial flights. Glad you had a great time!
Great report! Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for writing it up for us to enjoy!
Ditto to what MIchael T said!
Nothing worse than being stuck on the corporate jet with your workaholic boss......cocktails are out of the question & you have to look busy the entire time. Give me SQ business class any day!!
My mom's name is Shelley. I hope she didn't get a new job without telling me...
Where does the flight attendant hang out during the flight? I assume she is very good at keeping herself out of the way?
@ Bgriff -- Well in this case since there were 14 seats and just one passenger, she sat in passenger seats. We both sat at the table for a while chatting (I was fascinated by her job), and then later in the flight she sat in the forward section while I sat in the rear section. If the cabin is full (or half full or whatever) there's a jumpseat in the very front of the cabin, and otherwise the galley in the back is pretty large and feels somewhat removed from the cabin.
@ Andrew B -- Since Neil Diamond didn't come up in our conversation I'm going to assume it wasn't your mom. 😉
Nice report. Now if I can only make enough money to buy one so I never have to fly commercial again....
Really not a big deal. This is why, if you had a real job, you'd be flying corporate planes, not commercial, when appropriate.
N45AC is the same tail used by Jennifer Lopez, LeBron James and Charlie Sheen. Nice!
I agree with Michael T. and Nancy, nothing worse than to fly private jet on a biz trip with co-workers or the boss. After couple trips with bunch of workoholics you are happy to see your "friendly" TSA agent at the LAX and care less if you get an upgrade or not. Believe me. 🙂
As always I enjoyed this report and your humor. What a great way to celebrate six years blogging! You couldn't be more deserving and I couldn't be happier for you. As you mentioned though, good luck 'slumming' it in first class lol.
"So after a 10 hour flight she might have only eight hours before her next flight, but during that time has to go shopping for the flight."
Dumb question, but can gulfstreams even fly 10hrs straight?
Way to go, Ben! Literally.
I was laughing outloud, because a)I may have chosen reaction #1 to Shelley's question and b) would have soiled myself.
Seriously, one amazing experience that was all too short. I really enjoyed reading about your conversation with both the captain and Shelley.
Thank you very much for sharing it with us through pictures and words.
@ Umesh -- Yep, it has a range of about 4,500 NM, so can go to Europe nonstop from most of the US (though to the west coast would sometimes have to stop based on winds, maybe in Gander).
Congratulations Lucky! You were very fortunate to experience that side of air travel. It truly is a whole different level of service and convenience.
Reading your post brought me back to when I used to work for a company that also owned an air charter business. Everything from a King Air B200, to a Gulfstream, up to a 737. We tagged along once on a flight when the 737 was being updated with new seats and IFE. With the exception of 12 recliner seats in front, all of the seats had been removed. We played high stakes mini-golf flying from the the west coast to Texas. Sigh, now, I'm a public employee with two kids and fly Southwest domestically.
Hi All,
I've enjoyed reading Lucky's blog for a little over a year. I enjoy all the BoardingArea blogs but OneMileAtATime is the only one I subscribe to. About 8-10 mos ago I had "Mac", one of the guys that works alongside Lucky at PointsPros.com, assist me with an award booking. (DL pesos ...4 seats at the low award level... in Biz Class... on AF metal -- on the A380 no less -- LAX-CDG-LAX!) Since then I've referred others to PointsPros. All satisfied customers. That's my plug for Lucky's award booking service!
I enjoy the unique insight and advice one can get from Lucky's blog posts - all while being ENTERTAINED. I think that is what sets his blog apart from the others: Lucky's enthusiasm comes through in his writing style.
How the opportunity came about:
The charter operator emailed me the other day about their GIV departing empty out of Seattle asking if I had any friends or acquaintances that wanted to hop on for fun. I began thinking about who I knew in Seattle that (a) has the appetite to travel to a random destination, and (b) has the lifestyle to drop everything and hop on a one-way private jet ride and not worry about how they were going to return.
I didn't 'know' Lucky but am glad I reached out to him. Like you all, I really enjoyed reading about his experience. I was happy for him that he enjoyed it so much.
I have to credit the operator of the jet. All too often the charter operators of these empty leg flights will try and hold out til the very, very last minute, hoping to find a paying client only to have the plane fly empty to its destination. With less than 24 hrs til departure, the operator recognized that it was going to fly empty, and that it would be nice to put someone on the plane who could appreciate the experience. I was glad they reached out to me and I am glad I reached out to Lucky.
Lucky owes me a diet coke.
Jealous, I only know someone who owns private jets 😛
Did you have to pass any security/metal detector at Seattle? Does one simply go in, and walk onto the jet?
So happy you could take this!
You say the cabin was stunning.. but how does it compare to Emirates F?
“of course, you can do whatever you want.” Best line ever on this blog, or any other for that matter. One simple quote from a guy doing his job every day at Boeing Field just shows how ridiculous our commercial aviation security can be.
I really enjoy the takeoff experience on private jets. By comparison to commercial jets that lumber down the runway, the little jets need so little runway and they're so agile. It feels like you're on the back of a cougar when they leave the ground.
Wow. Just plain old wow. This is one of the best trip reports I have read on any blog. To me this is much more an aspirational experience than flying F on a 380.
Hi Lucky,
I think you should get your licence and become a commercial pilot - you are such an enthusiast!
Great report, I liked the last part with the AA Plane 🙂
Sounds great, and if anyone would really appreciate it, it's you. Glad you had such a great experience.
Mark and his hilariously predictable comments are now one of my favorite parts of the blog. When did he come on the scene?
Awesome... I remember that feeling the first time I got to take up ol' 737SA, "my private plane" during my first solo touch and go's.
Although not nearly as comfy, it was still cool as hell, and as an added bonus, I got to spend the next few months in the left cockpit seat! 🙂
On the other hand, the FBO didn't even have a vending machine and the coffee...
Nice review Lucky, I know this have been discussed a million times already on commercial flight, but should you tip on a private charter?
How do you expect us to go back to reading regular ol' commercial trip reports now?
Your comment, "this flight environment was just too classy for watching Shahs of Sunset or the Real Housewives of Atlanta." got me thinking. When the Kardashians have a chance to watch the Kardashians show on their private jet I wonder if they say this plane is too classy to watch ourselves. Probably not.
Wow that is my dream to fly in a private jet like that!
Did you read the story of Justin Bieber and his crew flying in a private jet recently? The pilots had to wear oxygen masks cause the whole plane was filled with smoke.
Awesome experience! Now -- thanks to Rick & Denielle -- all further trip reports will include comparison to GIV instead of SQ/CX/LH F 😛
It's not a private jet facility, Ben. It's an FBO - not a very nice one by the looks of it. FBOs are companies that offer services to private planes from Gulfstreams to 2 seater prop planes.
Some are very nice with showers etc and some are basic. Any private pilot would be quite familiar with them, especially the big ones like Signature or Mercury.
Nice experience. I agree with the first comment though too... It is great, especially domestically, but I'd take LH F over private for long-haul. Domestically though, I cherish every chance I get to fly in these!
This may seem silly, but I'm curious how the actual "feel" of flying felt relative to commercial flying? For example, do you feel the speed more on take off and/or in the air? What about flying through clouds.... Do you bump more/less? And so on. Thanks!
@ Craig -- Not a silly question at all. I was actually really surprised by how smooth the ride was, I thought it was quieter than a commercial jet and just as smooth.
The Gulfstream IV can cruise all the way up at 45,000 feet, so theoretically could adjust altitude more to find a smooth ride. Wasn't needed in this case, as we cruised at 39,000 feet most of the way.
@ David -- To clarify, can't say service was necessarily *better* than the best service I've ever had on commercial, since I've had some incredible service.
But service was in a *different* league. On a commercial flight, flight attendants have a galley with a curtain they can retreat to. On private it's tougher since the flight attendant has to be in the cabin the whole flight and has nowhere to retreat to, but at the same time doesn't want to be intrusive. That balancing act is an art in and of itself.
Hi Lucky,
I'm a long time lurker and really enjoy your posts and insights into travel. I will always remember my first private flight and you captured the spirit. Mine was two and half hours to Miami and I catered the crap out of it with lobster, shrimp, Dom etc. a bit much for that flight!haha
I've only ever been in a Gulf Stream on the ground, on display for sale at Sun N Fun. I was thinking yesterday that this would be a silly question, but based on some things you said here, maybe not - have you ever been to Sun N Fun? It seems right up your alley, and the Florida version happens in April right outside of Tampa.
I volunteered for over 10 years at Sun N Fun and flew in quite a lot of different ultralights in that time. Flying in an experimental aircraft is even more fun, though not luxurious - no flight attendants or cocktails, but you really feel that you're flying when the wind is in your face!
@ Lisa -- Too funny, years ago I did a summer camp there. Really enjoyed it! Would love to go back sometime.
Can you add a review of American Airlines domestic business/economy? If not, what did you take?
Wow, first time I read a review of a Private Jet experience. Nice one Lucky! I think you probably need to have a permanent advert link to charterbox.com form now on. 😉
Hi lucky,
Sounds like a you had a great experience and couldn't have happened to a nicer guy. Glad you got to do it and we got to read about it.Have been learning from and enjoying your blog for the past 3 years.
About 1 i/2 years ago I was the only passenger on a LAN 767 from MIA to CUN. I was an business class award flight to Easter Island using pre-devaluation British Airway miles. Was booked MIA-SCL stop and then on to IPC a few days later. The MIA-SCL flight had a stop in CUN and apparently LAN didn't have the authority to sell revenue tickets from MIA to CUN but was able to book an award ticket through to SCL. The pilots and flight attendants seemed as suprised as I was that they had a passenger on the first leg of the flight but couldn't have been nicer. They let me wander all over the plane including a short time in the jumpseat chatting with the pilots. Anyway, the plane filled up in Cancun and it was just your typical LAN business class flight the rest of the way.
Will be traveling to the Olympics in Sochi next week with my brother with a few days in IST first and then Moscow after the games. Your award booking service, PointsPro.com assisted with the flight arrangements.
Thanks again and keep up the great work!
Great Report Lucky. Hard to say what comes next... maybe Virgin Galactic 😉
Keep up the good work!
Glad you enjoyed the flight Ben! I took a Falcon 900X from Le Bourget to Zurich the other week, had two French ex fighter pilots at the controls who had the nose almost vertical on takeoff. I was sitting backwards and felt weightless for about 20seconds!
They then took us all the way up to 48,000ft - really shows how powerful these jets are...
They also had full HUD displays in the cockpit which were pretty cool, especially on approach.
Out of interest, what is the headroom like on a GIV? I am only familiar with Citations and Falcons.
Love your posts, and this one is no exception.
When I read the last line ("I mean, do you have any clue how tough it was to board this plane back to Los Angeles yesterday?"), the first thing that came to my mind was this -
What if the next leg of the trip was on Kuwait Airways rather than AA? Now that would have made for a 'well-rounded' trip report.
And I could not stop smiling (on a serious note, I would not wish for that for you - really happy that you got on this flight).
Awesome review!! Had a chance to fly private once HPNADS on a Dassault Falcon 900 and it completely spoiled me (wife won a contest for a once in a lifetime trip to the Superbowl in Dallas).
One highlight being that when we departed it was snowing in Dallas and the airport was closed. Rather than keeping us on the ground we got to "pick our stopover" and spent a lovely 4 hours in Nashville waiting for the airport to re-open. Pilot arranged for a car to pick us up, take us around and bring us back. Amazing.
You certainly dont get that on Delta 🙂
@Tobias: Richard Branson seems the kind of guy to actually do that. Maybe I should tweet him:
@richardbranson, Could you get @OneMileataTime a free flight on SpaceShipTwo? I would love to get a review as cool as this one: https://onemileatatime.com/flying-a-gulfstream-iv-the-flight-of-my-life/
Or shouldn't I?
Benjamin, i must've missed the post, but i didn't know your mom speaks english with a German accent! i knew about your vater...
No hot towels or mixed nuts, but at least the Diet Coke came with a lemon wedge!
@Rick - I love to read this blog for the same reasons you do. Thanks for getting Lucky onto this flight for such an amazing trip report!
I spy an Airshow® 4xx!
I guess with all the other perks of bizjet service, having a moving map product is no longer worth mentioning 😛 (Although I grant you that system is ancient)
Too bad the aircraft didn't have a current generation Cabin Management System; I'd love to see you report on an aircraft that does. I know it'd blow you mind!
@ Lucky, this is one of my favorite trip reports ever!!
@ Rick, thanks for making this experience happen so that all of Lucky's readers can partake in the experience.
Cool! That looks awesome! I love Boeing field, I fly in there all the time on kenmore air. Glad you got to do this, with all your great trip reports you deserve an experience like this!
I just recently discovered Lucky's blog. Can't stop reading. Haven't flown private but I do recall flying a prop job once where the pilot left the cockpit door open on landing. I was in the first row on the aisle and got a perfect view of the landing. This was of course back in the olden days.
You said you've been in the jumps eat of a commercial aircraft. How did you do this?? It's a dream of mine!
@Lucky I noticed you commenting on the facilities at the FBO and had not noticed this brought up elsewhere. When a charter client arrives at the airport to take a flight, at least 95% of the time the car pulls up about 20 feet from the plane, the client directs the ramp people which bags they want placed in the cargo hold, and then they walk right on board. The car (assuming the client drove themselves) is valet parked in a secure location. Thus the FBO terminal is primarily used by the pilots and crew, upon arrival the clients cars are waiting right near the door and are driven off the airport with the client never stepping foot inside the terminal.
I have a birds-eye view of this at my workplace, and it is truly an amazing way to travel. Thanks for the detailed report Ben!
HI Lucky,
It's always been a dream of mine to fly in a private jet so good on you. What's the noise level like compared to a commercial airliner.
Cheers
I love this! I work for an airport and have security clearance to go out on the apron. I'm as excited as a kid on Christmas EVERY TIME I do it, so I can completely relate to your enthusiasm. I love private jets and every time I see one take off and land (which is often) I can't help but wish I was on board. Thanks so much for sharing this experience - sounds like you had an amazing time!
I know this is an older post, but congrats! No matter whether it's a little Cessna 172 or a Falcon 8x, I still prefer General Aviation over Commercial any day of the week. Just not having to deal with TSA and airlines makes it worth it. Then there's the thrill of actually flying. In these small planes windows are relatively much larger than on the commercial aircraft and it doesn't feel like you're crammed in a tube and ran through like a bunch of cattle. My fav are the in-flight lessons the pilots are often willing to give. I grew up around small planes and never lost the desire to get right back up in one. Just last year I had the fortune of being allowed to do a take-off and VFR landing in a Piper Cheyenne. Absolutely awesome.
I hope this experience sticks with you and maybe someday you'll find yourself at the controls of one of these magnificent machines one day, even if it is only for one day, or even 10 minutes, or maybe a future career. I know if I had to do life all over again, being a pilot is right up there on my list.
Looks like Aeroflight changed a lot since I took lessons there back in the 90's. At that time it was a flight school with a bunch of Cessna 152's and 172's. Now it is called Kenmore Air Services or something like that. I live in Phoenix now and found this article when searching for what happened to Aeroflight.