PrivateFly reports three-fold demand increase following UK quarantine news
PrivateFly has reported three times the number of enquiries and bookings for flights out of countries set to be added to the UK’s quarantine list on Saturday (August 15th), compared with 24 hours previously. “We have been busy juggling what’s been going on to try to fit as many of these trips in as possible, especially on our family fleet.” Adam Twidell, PrivateFly CEO, told Corporate Jet Investor.
Twidell said: “Following the changes to the UK’s quarantine list overnight, we’ve received a surge in demand for private jet travel out of affected countries, with three times the average number of enquiries and bookings for flights to the UK from France, The Netherlands and Malta, before 4am on Saturday morning.
PrivateFly has also reported enquiries from clients booked to travel to listed destinations in the coming weeks wanting to change their travel plans in order to avoid quarantine zones. Availability is, however, limited as the spike in demand coincides with what is already the peak summer season for private leisure travel.
Twidell remarked on the variety of passengers that are travelling with PrivateFly. Often last-minute flights are organised by footballers needing to get home to avoid a fine, but Twidell said a group of teachers flew with the company from Nice in the south of France.
Will the spike in activity be repeated around the world as travel restrictions are imposed and lifted? Twidell thinks so. “Private aviation has always done well when there has been disruption to travel. Normally that has been airline strikes or weather disruption to airports, but whenever those sorts of things occur private aviation fills the gaps and I think this is just another example of it.”
PrivateFly flights are back up to pre-Covid-19 levels, according to Twidell and business aviation as a whole is sitting about 18% below the same level last year. The big hope is that as the summer ends traditionally business travel will return, he added. However, this depends on whether there is a second wave of Covid-19, acknowledged Twidell.
