When the pandemic began, everyone stopped flying.  Empty jets sat idle on tarmacs. Fares bottomed out. Airlines scrambled to implement new safety measures.  Gradually, passenger counts rebounded each month until all of a sudden, everyone started flying again. Business travelers, families and everyone in between were boarding aircraft, and paying premium fares to boot.  Then, commercial travel began to hit some turbulence. Those bumps were big […]

Elite Jets has welcomed seven new aviation professionals to its growing team, including three pilots with experience flying private jets, cargo planes and commercial airliners. Elite Jets, which has a private terminal and three hangars at the Naples Airport, has faced a surge in demand since the pandemic began that’s required the 5-year-old company to […]

Elite Jets has been named a finalist in GrowFL’s 2021 Companies to Watch program that recognizes growing Florida-based companies.   Elite Jets, founded in 2016, is a premier, safety-focused charter aircraft service based in Naples that serves affluent business and leisure passengers traveling to destinations across North, Central and South America, as well as the Caribbean. The company’s fleet includes four Embraer Phenom […]

Hurricane evacuations are largely spontaneous.  Although weather forecasters issue a five-day forecast track, it’s often imprecise. The three-day track is more reliable, but still not set in stone. Unfortunately, three days does not give much lead time to create and execute a comprehensive hurricane evacuation plan.  After preparing property, Florida residents should implement their evacuation plan. For many, that plan only consists of one question: should […]

The pandemic changed business travel. Executives are forgoing first class seats on commercial flights in favor of flying on private jets.  And who can blame them?  For business executives, traveling on a private jet certainly has its advantages: convenience, luxury, privacy and even price. Although private travel has always maintained those attributes, another advantage – safety – led many business travelers to fly privately for the first […]

Elite Jets has added three new pilots and a charter consultant to accommodate continued growth in the private travel industry.  The Naples-based charter company employs approximately 40 aviation professionals. New pilots include Kevin Johnson, Tom Taylor and Michael Grebb, and Josh Simpson as executive charter consultant.  “Elite Jets has grown steadily since the company was founded in 2016, and the pandemic accelerated […]

Summer travel was essentially a bust in 2020 because of the pandemic. Although Florida’s “safer at home” order had expired, there was nowhere for people to go. Attractions were closed. Restaurants were offering limited services. Even state and national parks weren’t ready to welcome visitors.  Fast forward to summer 2021. The travel outlook is strong, […]

Visitors to the Paradise Coast regularly note its beauty, splendor and tranquility, but they’re only seeing the region from one vantage point.  It is absolutely stunning from the air. Just ask anyone who has booked Elite Jets’ helicopter for a sightseeing trip. Aerial tours provide a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to view the Paradise Coast without having to navigate traffic or tourists.  Every tour begins at Elite Jets’ private terminal at […]

Flying in a private jet is an elite experience.  A frequent misconception is that flying privately is not realistic for “normal” people, only uber-affluent leisure and business travelers.  There is a way to fly privately at a reduced cost, though. It is called an empty leg flight.  An empty leg flight is a route that […]

COVID-19 thwarted summer vacation plans last year, but the 2021 summer travel season is poised for a significant rebound. Although tourist attractions and theme parks have reopened across much of the country, many leisure travelers are still avoiding crowded spaces. It is impossible to social distance in vacation hot-spots like Times Square in New York City, […]