How We Work: Operator Checks and What You Get

This page is the part most brokers leave vague.

What we check, what we tell you, and how we earn our money, set out in full. If another broker will not put the same in writing, that tells you something worth knowing before you book.

From enquiry to arrival

Five stages, and what actually happens in each.

01 The brief We start with the mission, not the aircraft: who travels, with what luggage and equipment, from where to where, and what happens at both ends. Ninety per cent of charter problems are ground problems, such as slots, handling, customs and crew duty time, and they are far cheaper to solve at this stage than on the day.
02 Operator selection We shortlist the operators that can actually fly the mission, then verify each one before quoting. An operator that fails a check does not appear in your quote, and we tell you when that happened and why.
03 The offer The specific aircraft registration, the operator name, the full route with timings, and a price that includes positioning, handling, catering, taxes and fees. Anything that could still move is named as a variable with an indication of its size, not hidden in a footnote.
04 Execution One named contact from booking to arrival, reachable around the clock. Before departure we confirm slots, handling and ground arrangements at both ends. On the day we track the flight, and if something changes you hear it from us first, with options already attached.
05 After the flight One invoice, itemised. Your feedback goes into our operator assessment, which is the record that decides who gets offered to the next client.

Verification is the work.

Anyone can forward you an operator quote. The part that takes time, and the part you are actually paying for, is establishing that the company behind the aircraft is fit to carry your people on this route, on this date, in this configuration.

We do that before you see a price, not after you have chosen one. It means some enquiries come back with fewer options than you expected, and a short note explaining who is missing from the list.

On every operator

What gets checked before a quote reaches you.

Air operator certificateValid, in the right category, and covering the intended operation and region.

InsuranceHull and third party liability, passenger cover, and sums insured appropriate to your group rather than whatever is carried as standard.

CrewHours on type, recency, and whether duty time works for your schedule without an extension.

AircraftRegistration, age, configuration and maintenance status of the actual tail offered, not of the fleet it belongs to.

Track recordIncident and enforcement history, and our own experience of working with the operator.

The document you receive

What is on every quote we send.

One page, in plain language, with nothing held back for the invoice.

QuotationJetmarque

The operator, by name Not a category, not "a reputable operator". The company whose certificate the flight runs under.

The aircraft registration The specific tail. If it changes before departure, you hear about it from us.

The full route with timings Including positioning legs, so you can see what you are paying to move and when.

What is included Positioning, handling, catering, taxes and fees, itemised rather than rolled into one number.

What could still move De-icing, extended waiting time, a slot change. Named as a variable with a sense of its size, before you sign.

Who to call One named contact, reachable at any hour, from the moment you book until you are back.

How we are paid

We are paid a commission by the operator, or a transparent fee agreed with you, and we tell you which before you book.

We do not accept a commission that would make a less suitable operator more attractive to us than a better one. That is the entire conflict of interest in this industry, and it is worth stating plainly rather than leaving you to assume.

The limits

What we do not do.

We do not operate aircraftAnd we do not hold an air operator certificate. That is what leaves us free to choose the right operator instead of selling you the one we own.

We do not promise capacity we have not confirmedAn aircraft is offered to you when it is genuinely available, not when it is probably available.

We do not quote prices we cannot holdA figure that has to be revised upwards after you have committed is not a quote, it is a deposit on an argument.

We do not take every missionIf yours is one we cannot arrange properly, we say so. Where we can, we tell you who can.

Questions we are asked

About working with a broker.

Why not go straight to an operator?

You can, and for a route you fly repeatedly with an operator you already trust, that is often sensible.

An operator can only offer you their own aircraft. If it does not fit the mission, the answer is either the wrong aircraft or no answer at all. We start from the mission and go looking, which is worth most exactly when the mission is unusual or the date is tight.

How do I know the checks actually happened?

Ask us. We will tell you what we verified on the operator you are being offered, and what we found. If an operator was excluded from your shortlist we will say which and why.

A broker who cannot answer that question in specifics has not done the work.

Does your commission bias what you recommend?

It would, if we let it. We tell you before you book whether we are paid by the operator or by you, and we do not accept a commission structure that makes a weaker operator more attractive to us than a stronger one.

If you would rather remove the question entirely, ask for a fee based arrangement and we will quote on that basis.

What happens if something goes wrong on the day?

You hear it from us before you hear it from the airport, and you hear it with options attached rather than as a problem handed over.

One named contact holds your booking from the moment it is made until you are back, and that person is reachable around the clock. It is the same person who quoted you, not a duty desk.

What if you cannot arrange my mission?

We say so, early, rather than working on it for three days and coming back with something that nearly fits.

Where we know who can do it properly, we tell you. We would rather lose the booking than put you on the wrong aircraft.

If yours is not here, ask it directly. We would rather tell you we do not know and go and find out than give you an answer that sounds right.

Tell us the mission.

Who travels, from where to where, and when. An assessment the same day, and in most cases a firm offer within 24 hours.

Request a quote

The aircraft is rarely the risk. The operator is.