With commercial airlines downsizing their fleets and cancelling flights daily, airport travel has become a nightmare. Chartering a private jet never looked more appealing. There are several companies that offer jet card programs, but like any investment, you need to do your due diligence before signing on.

The recently launched airtaxi operator DayJet has announced that it will layoff nearly half its staff and ground over half of its fleet of Eclipse 500 Jets.

The recent bankruptcy filing for JetNetwork has an important lesson for folks putting down deposits on charter cards and fractional cards – do your due diligence.

The Virgin group established an Internet charter flight-booking portal last June with the take-off of Virgin Charter. The program's invitation-only beta version will expand this year to connect all interested travelers to private aircraft charter operators.

Very light jets (VLJs) are revolutionizing private flying, making it possible to travel for business trips or vacations at short notice and with great ease. Two companies, DayJet and LinearAir, have tapped into the opportunity to use VLJs to offer travelers in the private aircraft market personalized service with no more than three passengers on most flights. These "Air Taxis" are changing private flying as we know it, and here is a look at how they do it.

Cirrus Design has taken the initial wraps of its long expected small jet. This single engine plane, dubbed "the-jet", will have seating for up to 5 adults and 2 children.

In a sign of the continuing strength of private aviation Executive AirShare has expanded operations to four cities and assembled a fleet of 12 aircraft and 20 pilots. The fractional aircraft company serves owners in Kansas City, Mo., Wichita, Kan., Tulsa, Okla., and Ft. Worth, Texas.

The newly public AvantAir has recently partnered with Century Bank to offer a financing package for fractional aircraft buyers.

AvantAir was recently taken public through a takeover by a publicly listed (shell) acquisition company - Ardent Acquisition Corp. This makes it the only pure play fractional aircraft company that is publicly traded.

As very light jets start to become more widespread, we came across two that have their own very unique characteristics. One of them has been around for almost 50 years, the other one is due for first deliveries in 2008. Both of them have military and civilian guises.

If emerging trends in the aviation industry are anything to go by, then the private flying sector will witness a growth in the next twenty years that is 10 times any the industry has observed in the last 50 years. Very light jets (VLJs) are raring to go and will have an impact on all aspects of private flying from full ownership, to fractional jets, charter, jet cards and the nascent air-taxi business. The rollout is already underway with the delivery of the first very light jet into a fractional program at Jet-Alliance.

Making a cost effective and educated choice is all important when traveling by private aircraft. The right choice, based on your needs including your typical travel patterns and budget, takes a little research to fully understand the options. We'll cover each of the private flying options in outline form here, with links to more information.

A fractional jet card is an alternate, albeit popular method of experiencing the benefits of private aviation. Jet cards give members access to 20 to 50 hours of flying time. Their popularity has opened up private flying to a whole new type of traveler. Someone who recognizes the inherent advantages of flying on the fractional fleets but who doesn't want to tie up the capital to become a fractional owner.

Several companies offer jet charter cards. These companies may either have their own aircraft fleets or may charter aircraft on the open market to meet the flying needs of their members. Jet charter cards provide most of the benefits of fractional jet cards to members, but at lower entry costs. Members experience the benefits of flying privately at some of the most competitive rates in the industry.

The latest statistics from the Department of Transportation show an increasing number of bags being lost by the commercial airlines. In addition only about 75% of commercial flights arrive on time. With these statistics it may now be the time to start looking into flying privately.

Yesterday Jet-Alliance reported that it had received delivery of the the first Eclipse 500 very light jet (VLJ). The company is offering fractional ownership for about $100,000 for a 1/16th share (50 hours of flying) and has orders for several more of the planes to build up it's fleet.

When Raytheon recently announced the sale of its aircraft business unit - manufacturer of Hawker and Beechcraft planes - it also made it clear that its fractional ownership business Flight Options, LLC was not part of the sale.

PlaneSense currently has 25 Pilatus PC-12s in it's fractional aircraft program and according to the New Hampshire Union Leader will increase this to 37 aircraft over the next year. This puts it in the top 6 fractional aircraft programs in the US.

Rumors continue to swirl about the sale of Raytheon's aircraft division, the manufacturer of Beechcraft and Hawker planes. Raytheon has been looking to sell this division for quite some time, since it doesn't quite fit with Raytheon's other defence contracting business units.

Aircraft charter has been around for a long time. It allows you to make use of a given plane for a given journey without any other long term commitment. There are thousands of aircraft available for charter, covering all sizes of planes from single engine turboprops to large executive jets. There are also a large number of air charter companies, who each provide their own level of service.