Many people continue to worry about flying commercial as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to spread across the United States. Commercial airlines have many stipulations if you do fly and most have cut their flights to allow for greater social distancing while in the air. Then you have people who are disregarding rules and taking off their masks, and that becomes a big worry for many passengers. It’s no wonder that people continue to question whether commercial flights are truly safe.
Instead of risking being on a commercial flight with a couple of hundred people, a great alternative may be taking an international jet, whether you’re traveling domestically or heading overseas.
Traveling Privately Reduces Your Exposure
According to Forbes, heading to a commercial airport terminal and then flying commercial can result in as many as 270 person-to-person interactions that could result in exposure to Covid-19. That sounds pretty scary. But compare that to flying privately where you’d likely have under 20 person-to-person interactions. That’s a huge difference.
Those numbers don’t even take into account the bacteria that could be lurking on various surfaces throughout the aircraft cabins of commercial planes. Tray tables, headrests, and other areas often have high levels of bacteria. For this reason, there’s been an increase in the number of individuals turning to private aviation when they need to fly.
While you’ll have fewer person-to-person interactions with other individuals, you’ll also reduce the time of those interactions by flying privately. Instead of arriving two hours before your flight and spending all that time in shared spaces, most private jets will only require you to arrive about 20 minutes early.
Private Air Travel Becomes More Popular
Although the commercial airline industry has been hit hard because of the coronavirus, private travel is doing better. In fact, according to the New York Times, private air travel aboard an international jet is becoming more popular, despite the costs. Many individuals are choosing to co-charter jets to reduce costs while still enjoying the safety that comes with private air travel.
Of course, beyond the increased safety of flying privately, choosing private air travel offers a number of other great benefits, including:
- Arriving at your destination faster
- The ability to get closer to your destination by using smaller airports
- Saving time for the things that are most important
- Skipping the long security lines and all the time-sucks that come with commercial travel
- Traveling in comfort and having plenty of room onboard
- Increased work productivity if you need to work while flying
- Fewer baggage concerns
- Excellent service from the staff
- Great food choices while onboard
- Choose departure times that work for you