Corporate Jet Passengers -- Often the Female Boss

This week is a big week for corporate jets in New York, as squadrons of them arrive at area airports with business executives and their customers for the All-Star game at Yankee Stadium.

So who's really in the passenger cabins of these corporate jets? If you're thinking of becoming a pilot and flying for a corporation, you might find this interesting. The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) says about 75% of the approximately 11,000 business jets in the US are operated by entrepreneurs and small to midsize companies. 

One private jet company, XOJET, according to the New York Times, said that about 15 percent of its customers are female bosses and business owners.  And the number of women using private jets is growing. Why? It appears it's not status or ego, but time as the main factor: Using a private jet buys time.  One business owner from Arizona says it allows her to make better use of her time and do more. She owns a seven-seat Hawker 400, which has a 1,400 mile range. 

Another regular user of private jets in Los Angeles, a woman who is a psychotherapist and a real estate developer, uses her eight-passenger Cessna Citation X to save time getting to meetings and to quickly get back home to her business and family. Being in control of your travel time solves logistical problems also.

These women consider the cost of flying in their private jets money well spent, as it gives them time to attend to business more efficiently.