Business trips can take its toll on the constant traveler. As more and more executives spend about as much time in the air as they do in the office – time being of the essence – a burgeoning demand for private jets has begun to grow in Asia.

“More and more businessmen in Asia want to take private jets instead of firstclass commercial airlines as you don’t have to do immigration and most of the private airports are much closer to the city rather than the commercial ones,” said Ms Sonia Munro, managing director of Flight Level (FL) 500, a company that manages private jets in Asia-Pacific.

Based in Singapore, FL 500 mainly charters private jets to companies and business owners who crave the convenience of flying in privacy. In a typical scenario, a client flying out of Singapore will have his luggage picked up and loaded onto the plane before a chauffeur takes him to Seletar Airport.

“When they land, the limousine will be waiting for them right in front of the aircraft, so they’ll walk right straight to the limo,” explained Ms Munro in a surreal reference to a scene typical of Hollywood films.

She added that clients value the flexibility of not having to adhere to strict commercial flight schedules as they are able to depart at their time of choosing. Further, private jets are a perfect answer for those having to travel to remote destinations, where direct flights may not be available.

“So many businesses nowadays have factories in such places which have limited facilities for commercial airlines. But as long as there’s a suitable landing strip, we’d be able to get the client there,” said Ms Munro.

FL 500 offers aircraft chartering, sales and management services. While chartering has always been popular, Ms Munro hopes to rectify the “misconception” that private jet ownership is something utterly expensive.

What the company proposes is for private jet owners to place their aircraft under its management and aside from maintaining it, FL 500 would also help owners charter out their planes.

“Roughly, a typical businessman would use a jet for an average of 200 to 300 hours maximum in a year. So they can give it to us to charter for the remainder of the time and they will get revenue from that.

We can sign contracts with so many companies in Asia…and let’s say that they sign for 100 hours each in a year, then most of that money will be re-channeled to the clients,” said Ms Munro.

Ms Munro added that clients who typically use their plane for 200 hours and charters for 700 hours in a year would receive enough revenue to cover his or her operating cost for the jet, with even a profit margin to spare.

An interesting proposition indeed for those seeking privacy, great on-board meals and ‘immigration-less’ travel while doing business around the globe.