The use of on-demand air travel – whether through charter aircraft, fractional ownership, charter cards or aircraft ownership – is a powerful business tool. It can leverage your time and brand, retain critical employees, and provide emergency response abilities that cannot be provided by the airlines or other forms of travel.

But there are risks involved, and they go beyond the obvious need for assuring safety. A company that manages its use of business aviation poorly can see its brand and reputation damaged and can face unnecessary tax, insurance and legal exposures.

Meeting the requirements for Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification is not enough. FAA certification is a basic risk mitigation strategy that does not address:

• Best practices.
• Risk identification and mitigation.
• Compliance.
• Integration into current business culture and policies.

An intentional definition of the strategic purpose for use of on-demand travel, as well as defining risk tolerance, enables you to select a provider (or operate your own business aircraft) for service that is aligned with your needs.

Before considering business aircraft, it is important to understand what questions to ask. Then, it is essential to put in place policies and best practices that mitigate risk and allow your company to reap the full benefits of business aircraft use.