Do you know your Boeing from your Bombardier?
Luxury travel is a growing market, and when it comes to private jets there’s just so much choice. If you’re looking to rent a private jet – or are even considering purchasing – this article will break down what’s available from the lower end to the ultra-prestige, helping you to decide and embark on luxury travels worldwide.
When you’ve made your choice and are ready to rent a private aircraft and hit the skies, it’s worth taking a moment or two to consider who you’re going to place your trust in when it comes to luxury private jet travel providers. While some might not be able to offer exactly what you’re looking for, experienced and trusted providers like Skyllence take pride in guiding you through the process of hiring a private jet, ensuring that you arrive safely and are left satisfied at the end of your trip.
“We love helping people decide on which private jet best suits their needs,” remarks Vilius Radziukas, Head of Sales at Skyllence. “There are so many models available on the market, and everyone’s journey is different. Whether you’re heading for a luxury family holiday or need something to accommodate an entire executive team as they travel to a MICE event, we’re confident that we can collaborate and help you achieve smooth, relaxing, enjoyable travel – so much so that you might even look forward to coming home!”
10. Hondajet 2600
- Passengers: 8
- Range: 2,625 nm
- Speed: 517 mph
- Cost: $10m+
Let’s begin this list with the lower end of the luxury travel market. While the Hondajet’s small stature and relatively modest price tag (just wait until you see the others) might imply that it has no place in a list of the top 10 private jets in the world, for many these exact features make it number 1. It’s nimble, nippy, and not too expensive, making it ideal for the business that takes only short trips with fairly few occupants. For them, the Hondajet offers exactly what they need – and what’s more luxurious than that?
Private jet charter involving the Hondajet is a common occurrence, as often those hiring a private jet aren’t looking for a vast intercontinental journey, but a few short hours spent hopping between meetings or a little extra slice of travel luxury when it comes to the family holiday. For those families, hiring the world’s most expensive private jet would be wasteful and cumbersome, so the Hondajet and others like it represent the perfect choice of aircraft and justify their place on the list of top private jets.
9. Pilatus PC-24
- Passengers: 10
- Range: 2,072 nm
- Speed: 506 mph
- Cost: $10.7m
In the same vein, albeit moving up a gear in terms of passenger occupancy, the Pilatus PC-24 markets itself as the world’s first super versatile jet. Top private jet manufacturers often find themselves pigeonholed when designing: shall we make an ultra-high-end luxury private aircraft, or something aimed at the lower portion of the market? The Pilatus PC-24 is an attempt to do both at once, offering luxury aligned with a more forgiving price tag and the smaller size of the Hondajet.
While Pilatus might not yet count itself among the top private jet brands, innovation such as this in the luxury private jet market could see it climb in the near future. It’s this novelty that sees it included in this list of the top 10 best private jets – but don’t be surprised if a new entry from the Swiss manufacturer ranks higher next time around.
8. Embraer Praetor 600
- Passengers: 12
- Range: 4,018 nm
- Speed: 536 mph
- Cost: $21m
The Embraer Praetor 600 marks the start of the mid-range luxury private aircraft in this list. This is reflected in increased capacity, longer range, and larger price tags. Embraer planes are renowned for their focus on premium quality, making them an ideal choice when it comes to luxury private aircraft. Those looking to book private jet flights that involve aircraft from this Brazilian manufacturer often do so expecting middle-of-the-pack pricing with upper-range quality – and they’re seldom disappointed.
While an Embraer plane might not be as well-known outside of aviation circles as, say, its Boeing or Airbus cousins, there’s no doubt that it sits easily alongside them on the tarmac, and it’s for good reason that an Embraer private jet is a common choice for executives and companies that assist people looking for private jet flights.
7. Cessna Citation Longitude
- Passengers: 12
- Range: 3,500 nm
- Speed: 556 mph
- Cost: $26m
Cessna aircraft might be more commonly associated with hobby aircraft and small turboprops, but rest assured – they’ve earned their wings when it comes to lists of the top 10 best private jets. Of all Cessna planes, the Citation Longitude is perhaps the most well-known private jet offering, and charter private jet flights involving this aircraft are a common occurrence.
A Cessna jet such as this will set you back a cool $26m outright, but private jet charters involving this model can be much more affordable. For this reason, when choosing a private plane, Cessna models are a frequent choice for mid-ranged requirements such as luxury family holidays, business purposes, or MICE events for small businesses or executive teams.
6. Hawker 4000
- Passengers: 14
- Range: 3,280 nm
- Speed: 639 mph
- Cost: $33m
Again a lesser-known brand, the Hawker 4000 makes this list of the most expensive private jets due to its $33m price tag. Beyond the dollar signs, the Hawker features in private jet rentals due to its slightly larger capacity, allowing those renting its services to involve a bigger team, bring along more of the extended family, or simply have more room in which to operate while on board.
Size and interior capacity really are the main elements that draw clients to the Hawker 40000, and those who rent or purchase this private jet do so safe in the knowledge that last-minute arrivals can easily be accommodated. If you’re looking for something sleek, spacious, and speedy to boot – but don’t need to be able to head to the moon and back on one tank – then the Hawker 4000 could well be your aircraft of choice.
5. Gulfstream G800
- Passengers: 19
- Range: 8,000 nm
- Speed: 691 mph
- Cost: $72m+
The aeronautically named Gulfstream is a mainstay in the elite private jet market, and their entry marks the beginning of the upper range in this list. The G800 is a Gulfstream jet with serious chops: faster, far more expensive, and with over double the range of any previous entry on this list of the top ten private jets in the world. We’re now beginning to head into the territory of billionaires, global conglomerates, or multinational businesses, for whom time is of the essence and intercontinental trips are the norm.
Private ownership is not the only place in which this Gulfstream aircraft can be encountered, though, as it’s also available for luxury travel to those looking to rent a private jet. While the significant outright cost of this model is likely to be reflected in the price of chartering a private flight on it, the aforementioned advantages of the G800 can mean that for some clients it represents value. If that’s true for your specific requirements, then a Gulfstream plane is in the offing – you won’t be disappointed!
4. Dassault Falcon 10x
- Passengers: 8
- Range: 7,500nm
- Speed: 710 mph
- Cost: $75m+
The aircraft in this category all possess very similar characteristics, with minor deviations in price, range, capacity and speed. When it comes to deciding which private jet to hire, it might seem like splitting hairs, but it’s important to choose a model that emphasises strengths which match your requirements exactly. With the Dassault Falcon 10x, arguably the premier offering from Dassault Aviation, size and speed is the name of the game.
Those looking to purchase or rent a private jet that’s quick, has a longer range, but isn’t burdened by excess capacity might consider the Falcon 10x, as this Dassault aircraft combines the advantages of smaller models – accessibility, manoeuvrability, fuel efficiency – with the range, speed, and comfort of an ultra-premium luxury jet.
3. Bombardier Global 8000
- Passengers: 19
- Range: 8,000nm
- Speed: 721mph
- Cost: $78m+
Bombardier planes are renowned the world over for build quality, ultra-premium interiors, and dependable performance. If these characteristics sound like they match what you’re looking for when you charter a private plane or purchase a luxury aircraft, then your decision might be close to being made. The Global 8000 is arguably the Bombardier aircraft that best exhibits these features, and it doesn’t stop there.
Pairing the traditional mainstays of a Bombardier plane with industry-leading performance attributes – including an obscene top speed and a truly global range – allows the Global 8000 to see use among the ultra-VIP private luxury jet market. The fastest business jet ever conceived surely appeals to those who need to get things done in a hurry, and if that sounds like you then hiring or purchasing a Global 8000 is a logical step.
2. Airbus ACJ 220
- Passengers: 19
- Range: 5,650nm
- Speed: 629 mph
- Cost: $80m+
Looking purely at the figures alone, the ACJ 220 might seem like poor value in comparison to the Bombardier Global 8000, but don’t be too quick to judge just yet. The most expensive private jet interiors are difficult to quantify, as taste is a deeply personal thing, but rest assured: the ACJ 220 is seriously pretty.
Those that emphasise the sumptuousness of the interior in which they’re sat while flying will surely opt for this Airbus aircraft – not to say that its rivals are slouches in this department either, mind, but there’s just that little extra on offer here. As far as rentals are concerned, perhaps those looking to impress a potential business partner might do so not with statistics and performance charts, but with the comfort and pleasure experienced when you fly on the ACJ 200.
1. Boeing Business Jet 747-8 VIP
- Passengers: 100+
- Range: 8000nm
- Speed: 650 mph
- Cost: $367m+
You didn’t think that the list of the top 10 most expensive private jets in the world would finish without mentioning a Boeing aircraft, did you? As it happens, the most expensive Boeing private jet is also the most expensive private jet in the world, period – and now we’re talking serious money. We’ve left the world of chartering a private jet, as the price tag of the Boeing Business Jet 747-8 VIP is the sole domain of billionaires. If you have to ask “how much is the most expensive private jet”, then, as the saying goes, you can’t afford it – but just for the sake of completeness, it’s at least $367m.
Getting inside the most expensive private jet will require seriously deep pockets – or really good networking skills – but it would surely be worth it for a glimpse at what is, naturally, the most expensive private jet interior. While it’s commonly said that money can’t buy taste, private jet interiors seriously challenge that claim, as how else is something of this magnitude to be decorated other than with staggering opulence? Put simply: if you’ve got it, flaunt it – and there’s no danger of the Boeing Business Jet 747-8 VIP or its interior ever being described as modest.
The Sky’s the Limit
The 747-8 VIP rounds out this list, but there’s almost infinite scope to splurge further as money essentially becomes fictional past this point. Back on Earth, though, it’s clear to see why so much confusion abounds when it comes to choosing a private jet, and hopefully this article has helped you avoid being washed away in a sea of facts and figures. Top speed this, maximum range that, carrying capacity here, cruising altitude there – ultimately, what we want from an aircraft can be hard to define.
That’s why private jet charter providers like Skyllence are so useful. Serving as an interface between what we want and the confusing jargon that makes up what we need, we can simply tell them “I need to be here by this date with this many colleagues”, and leave them to take care of the rest. All that’s left then is to pack the suitcases and await take-off – without a fact or figure in sight!
Skyllence’s Head of Sales, Vilius Radziukas, often deals with clients who aren’t aeronautical aficionados, and relishes the chance to help them. “When clients come to us, they don’t say ‘I’d like to travel at 634 mph for 2493 nautical miles please’, they say ‘I need to be in Berlin on Tuesday with my three colleagues, but we can’t leave the office until 5PM’. Finding solutions can be challenging, but it keeps our jobs interesting and allows us to help people get on with their lives. That’s why we’re so proud of the service we offer – and it’s why clients keep returning to us!”
