Route Structure Challenge
A major challenge for the charter industry is the coordination between their fleet of jets and paying passengers. Commercial airlines operate on a schedule. Charters are on-demand and unpredictable.
Last updated
A major challenge for the charter industry is the coordination between their fleet of jets and paying passengers. Commercial airlines operate on a schedule. Charters are on-demand and unpredictable.
Last updated
To understand how we are making private flights cheaper, it is critical to understand the difference in efficiency between a commercial airline and a charter operation. We are fixing some of the key inefficiencies we see with new technology and automation.
Commercial airlines operate with greater efficiency because they utilize a hub-and-spoke structure. They move a large number of passengers through a central location and disburse the travel to other central operating locations. This allows timely management of customers and high throughput. It also maintains all maintenance, cleaning, catering, and customer services in a central location. As more passengers are moved through point A to all other access points, this allows more efficiency and easier management. By extension, generating more revenue for the airline which aids in keeping costs low for the passengers.
On the other hand, charter jet operations do not have the luxury of scheduled departure times and centralized services. The “throughput” of passengers in a charter jet fleet is drastically reduced due to the inefficiencies created by their "on-demand" route structures. This leads to more work and higher costs. As a result, the charter companies have to pass these on to the customer in the form of high initiation fees, monthly dues, daily rates, and hourly rates.
*Below is a graphic that illustrates the route structures of commercial and charter operations. The green and red indicate profit and loss respectively. Charter operations fly nearly 40% of their flights empty.
