In a recent interview in JustLuxe, Magellan Jets COO Todd Weeber spoke about the state of the private aviation industry, the ways the pandemic has changed the business, and how COVID has allowed the private jet sector and Magellan Jets to evolve in positive ways.
In the post-COVID world, safety has driven more and more people to fly private. Weeber highlights the 50% increase in jet card and membership programs and a 33% increase in on-demand jet charter Magellan Jets saw during the first quarter of 2021. One way COVID affected private aviation, Weeber said in the interview, was that it made obvious the safety and efficiency of flying private as compared to flying commercial. Now that major airlines are prioritizing their schedules and routes for leisure travel, Weeber said, private business aviation’s ability to help travelers avoid the risk of crowded airport terminals and cabins while saving them time is a huge draw:
“There is a renewed understanding of the value that business aviation provides. It is safer to travel with smaller groups of people that you know. No storming of cockpits by troubled people. In addition, our new destination partners provide easy and safe access to hundreds of resort, villa, estate, and yachting destinations.
In addition, there is now in commercial aircraft both a scarcity of available aircraft and qualified crew members, and if you have to go somewhere, you often have to travel to other destinations before you go to your preferred destination. Business aviation using private jets takes you from here to there as we know what our clients know: time is precious.”
Magellan Jets’ approach to safety evolved as a result of the pandemic, too. Demonstrating the company core value of leading with safety, Magellan introduced a multi-layered approach to safety with the 5 x 5 PureSky Safety Standard, and kept guests informed regarding safety procedure changes, international travel restrictions, federal mandates, and safe travel havens.
Weeber also discusses the green future of private flying (including the use of sustainable aviation fuels, or SAFs), upgrades to Magellan’s Jet Card aircraft portfolio, and more. Click below to read the full JustLuxe interview.
