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If you need to fly less than 50 hours per year but still want to
benefit from the top end services of major operators, a membership
card gives you flying time on their whole fleet, in a very convenient
way.
The operational principle is simple: You choose an
aircraft from the range of models proposed by the operator and pre-pay
a certain amount of flight hours (usually 25 or 50). Then, you use
them freely according to your own diary, with no concern for availability
since the operator has the contractual obligation to provide you
a plane wherever you are, whenever you need. This ultra-convenience
makes this option different from the normal “time sharing”
arrangement where the sharers often compete to use their only plane…
often all at the same time.
Moreover, if you punctually need an aircraft from
a different category (depending on range, number of seats, etc.),
your “credit” of hours is eligible for use on all other
types of machines proposed in the programme you subscribe to. Thus,
only major operators such as NetJets, with more than 600 jets from
11 available types in the US or in Europe, can offer such a service.
As a last, but no means the least, benefit, your actual
flying time is precisely calculated and you receive every month
a flight-hours statement for a precise follow-up.
If this option gives you huge operational benefits,
some financial aspects should be enlightened.
First, you have to pay in advance for your flights
and this cash is therefore no longer available to you for other
uses. Second, if you have misjudged your needs, you could encounter
difficulties to sell back your flying time credit. Finally, on a
purely accounting point of view, you still do not possess assets
that could be eligible for depreciation and tax leverage.
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