Everything you need to know about flying private…

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Best for long haul

If you want a jet that can carry up to 17 passengers and fly up to 14 hours/7,500 miles, the Bombardier Global 6000 (from around $20mn used, $60mn new) offers first-class comfort and sleeps eight. The new Global 8000 (19 passengers, can include a private suite with a full-sized bed, $81mn) can cruise at just under the speed of sound, while Gulfstream’s G800 (19 passengers, sleeps 10, $72.5mn), provides similar speed and space. The G650 (19 passengers, sleeps up to 10; $35mn to $78mn) is slightly smaller, but no less luxurious and good for 7,000 miles. 

Best for a mini break

“Very Light” (VLJ) and “Light” jets’ ranges are 1,000 and 1,500 miles respectively. Few  VLJs have a loo; expect limited headroom and minimal luggage space. The Embraer Phenom 100 (from $4.5mn) or Cessna Citation Mustang ($1.25mn to $3mn) VLJs sit four in comfort, plus one on a seatbelted loo (if installed). Or take the single pilot option and bag the co-pilot’s chair. Midsize jets such as Cessna’s Citation XLS (2009 model from $6.4mn), mean up to 12 seats, a lavatory and more bag space. The Phenom 300 ($9.8mn to $11.5mn) accommodates six in comfort, 10 at a squeeze, with a “refreshment centre” and lavatory. A charter costs from around £25,000.

Best for work

Take a Cessna Citation CJ3 ($4.9mn to $6.5mn) for a meeting in Europe, with 1,665 miles of range with four passengers in a “club” seating layout (there’s also a loo). London to Munich return, two nights away, is from around £23,000 for charter. For, say, New York or Dubai from London, a Gulfstream G650 ($35mn to $78mn) or Dassault Falcon 7X (new from around $54mn) have stand-up cabins, seats for 13 to 16, a sofa, several areas for work and rest, WiFi, cabin attendant and hot meals – a charter starts at around £120,000.

Best for a party

Partygoers heading to Ibiza or St Moritz travelling commercial endure three-hour airport transits before any disruption. Flying private means that you can fly from fast-track executive jet terminals when you’re ready. Meanwhile, major ski destination commercial airports are hours away from the resorts. Instead fly private to, for example, Engadin Airport, 10 minutes from St Moritz’s bars. A Phenom 100 for four friends to a within-Europe destination party night costs around £10,000 to £15,000 for a charter. A Phenom 300 for four to six friends for a weekend in Ibiza or Saint Moritz costs from £30,000.

Best for pets

Many “pet parents” can’t bear putting their dog or cat in an airliner’s hold, and short-snouted canines like bulldogs struggle to breathe in commercial jets’ simulated “cabin altitude” of around 6,000 feet, double that of private jets. Reserve one of 10 spots with K9 Jets for passenger and maximum two pets, on, typically, a Gulfstream G-IVSP or G-V. It has timetables to and from European and US cities, Dubai and Melbourne. One way for passenger and pets, from $8,925.

Best for heading off the beaten track

The Pilatus PC-24 (from around $8.5mn) is the only small jet designed to take off and land at licensed gravel or grass airstrips. With rugged engineering behind the luxury, it offers thousands more destination possibilities than runway-only jets. A range of 2,000 miles for up to six means you’ll have to stop to refuel for distant adventures, but the time is recouped by the fact you can land closer to your final destination.

Best for frequent flyers

NetJets has more than 1,000 jets to suit all kinds of journeys, with fractional ownership plans ideal for those wanting to fly for 50 or more hours a year. Flexjet offers a share of an aircraft’s annual 800 available flying hours on its Gulfstream G650s and Praetor 600s. For a G650, 100 hours of flying costs around $6mn; for a Praetor 600 50 hours of flying will set you back around $1.6mn.

Best for a world tour 

Taylor Swift grabbed headlines during her Eras tour with the big distances covered in her Dassault Falcon 7X. Dassault’s three-engined jets can use shorter runways because of their extra power, and are acknowledged as safer should an engine fail. Taylor’s Falcon cabin layout is unknown, but they can seat up to 16 – though likely fewer – for 11-hour/6,800-mile flights at a super-smooth and fuel-efficient 51,000 feet. Andy Christie of Air Charter Service says chartering a Falcon 7X like Swift’s for a two-week family or friends multi-stop trip would cost at least £1mn, roughly the value of an artist’s paycheck after hitting one million album sales. 

Charter prices may vary with passenger numbers and fuel prices; acquisition costs may not include a designer or fitted interior