Travelling by private jet was once considered to be the ultimate travel indulgence; chartering an entire aircraft for you and your family or friends to jet away to a remote island is the stuff travel fantasies are made of. But those in the business of selling and chartering private aircraft are keen to paint a different picture of private jet travel, one that has a positive impact on productivity, accessibility and ultimately, bottom line. They’re obviously doing a good job. Aerospace technology giant Honeywell forecasts that some 9,450 new aircraft will be delivered to customers by 2024 — an order book worth US $280 million. This year alone, upwards of 650 new jets were delivered to private, government and corporate buyers around the world. While the thirst for private jet ownership is huge in the Middle East (Brazil-based aircraft manufacturer Embraer says that some 50 percent of the aircraft produced by its executive jet division are based in the Middle East) and other developing countries, North America remains the largest market for jet sales.

Today, a proliferation of jet-sharing clubs, charter operators and mobile-based jet-booking services are providing new ways for people to access private jet travel without the financial burden of having to purchase their own aircraft. The democratisation of private jet travel through the so-called sharing economy is good news for aircraft manufacturers: more passengers means more plane demand. With demand comes competition and innovation, and evidence of both was apparent at the Middle East Business Aviation (MEBA) show at Dubai World Central (DWC) last month, where 420 companies presented their latest products before a global audience of private jet owners, buyers and operators. Jet builders including Gulfstream, Embraer, Bombardier and Dassault displayed their latest models, all striving to outdo each other in everything from design and performance to on-board luxuries and, perhaps most importantly of all in these modern times, internet connectivity. Whether you’re a private buyer or a business leader in the market for a new company jet, here’s a guide to all the latest trends and innovations to help you make your purchase.

Staying Connected

Gone are the days when a long-haul flight meant a few hours free from work emails and conference calls. Whether you’re on the road, at sea or in the air, it’s possible to stay permanently connected. But the extent and speed at which we are connected is constantly evolving and mastery of this space is being hotly contested by technology providers. Honeywell, one of the industry’s leading technology innovators, has partnered with British satellite company Inmarsat to create what it hopes will be a game-changing in-flight connectivity proposition. Thanks to three new Ka-band satellites, Honeywell’s GX Aviation system will be able to deliver data rates of 50Mbps to commercial and large private aircraft — significantly higher speeds than we have seen before in aviation. The high-speed connections will allow passengers to do anything from stream movies or live TV to upload large presentations and check their social media feeds. For mid-sized and small jets, a smaller system called Jet ConneX will provide speeds of 33Mbps via the onboard hardware JetWave, which is currently being rolled out on Bombardier’s Global range of business jets (above and opposite). The bad news is that there’s no longer any excuse for not replying to that urgent work email or bowing out of a video conference call.

Let me entertain you

In-flight entertainment is something that commercial airlines have perfected over the decades, but with often virtually unlimited budgets, it’s no surprise that private jets are giving them a run for their money. If you’re flying for business, presentation screens and conference rooms are a prerequisite, and increasingly reliable connectivity means that live video conferencing is now a reality. But if you’re in for the long haul, or travelling with the family, then you’re going to need something a little more enjoyable to while away the hours. Enter: Rockwell Collins’ Venue cabin management system, which connects content from an onboard Apple iTunes library to multiple HD screens and personal Apple iOS devices. You can control wall-mounted screens and settings (window blinds, lighting, volume etc.) from your personal smart device or touchscreen monitor, and push content stored on your device’s library onto the cabin displays or sound system. An optional Tailwind TV system provides a live news and sports feed for the aircraft, while Airshow will track your flight information. If you’ve got restless kids flying with you, you can connect a PlayStation or Xbox directly to the system.

Speed and scenery

Even if you plan to spend most of the flight glued to your screen on a conference call with Tokyo, we all like to look out the window once in a while. For serious stargazers, Gulfstream sets itself apart from the competition with (amongst other things) wider panoramic windows that are about 16 percent larger than the industry standard. The company’s superlative 18-seater G650ER (left), has a maximum operating speed of Mach 0.925 (making it one of the fastest corporate jets in the air) but performs best at Mach 0.85, which allows the long-range jet to fly 7500 Nm on one tank of gas. That’s enough to get you from Dubai to anywhere in the world, except parts of South America and Mexico, without stopping. The G650ER also has the lowest cabin altitude in its class: at 45,000 feet, the cabin is pressurised to an atmosphere equivalent to 4,060 feet, which is around half the cabin pressure of commercial aircraft. The lower air pressure means the body is able to function better and works less hard to do so, meaning a less fatiguing flight. But if you really like to appreciate the view, you’ll need to have your jet fitted with Fokker’s SkyView panoramic windows. Made from two bonded panels of one-inch thick glass, the huge 1.4 m x 0.5 m windows are currently available for Boeing Business Jets.

Going mobile

Ten years ago, people were reluctant to book commercial flights or hotel rooms online because the technology was new and alien. A decade later, online bookings account for a staggering percentage of commercial flights and hotel reservations. Stalwarts of the sometimes archaic private jet charter business will tell you that customers looking to drop upwards of $20,000 on a flight still need the personal touch — someone on the end of the phone or face-to-face to make the booking and any additional arrangements. But the naysayers are being put to shame by a raft of charter firms whose business models are built on mobile app-based booking technology. The likes of BlackJet, JetSmarter and PrivateFly have all reported a positive uptake of mobile-based jet bookings. And its not just small, short-haul charters that are being booked using these apps; JetSmarter CEO Sergey Petrossov (right) says that Middle Eastern customers regularly book “heavy metal” flights from their mobile phones. If history is anything to go by, it’s likely that as confidence builds, more and more operators will offer app-based bookings in the future, leading to more competition and therefore, better service.

New world order

If Dubai is the new hub of the world, then Dubai World Central is its future gateway. The vast aerotropolis will be far more than just an airport, comprising eight distinct districts covering 140 square kilometres when complete; home to everything from golf courses and hotels to logistics hubs and exhibition space. Core to the Dubai World Central proposition is Al Maktoum International Airport, which expects to handle 160 million passengers per year when complete, making it the largest airport by volume in the world. As well as vast runways and terminal buildings for commercial flights, DWC is developing an Executive Terminal (above and right) that will be home to all private jet movements at the airport by the end of 2015. Three private jet charter firms — Jetex, XJet and Jet Aviation — are already on board to provide fixed-base operations (FBO) at the airport, complementing DC Aviation’s existing facility. In addition to the passenger-facing services, the terminal will be home to hangars for aircraft storage, MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) and a VVIP jet completion centre big enough to house a Boeing 747-800 during its final fit-out and completion.