“I make sure we can charter the planes when none of us are using them.”   He feels there is a small but steadily growing population that will purchase planes in India. “Ten years ago we wouldn’t have had this conversation,” he points out. Singh recently procured a helicopter for a Mumbai-based businessman who travels daily to his business site by chopper.

There are cheaper alternatives too. Jayant Avasthi, 36, is in the interiors business in Allahabad and has recently bought a two-seater Microlight plane that costs under Rs 50 lakh. It’s non-pressurised and noisy, certainly not a corporate jet, but it flies. The son of an Indian Air Force fighter pilot, Avasthi learnt to fly in Mysore Aerosports Academy. “I can take off every weekend to Goa or Manali if I like,” asserts Avasthi. He’s now sought permission from the government to use two abandoned World War II airports, thirty minutes from Allahabad, and plans to set up a flying club there. Avasthi has also applied for a permit to fly his Microlight abroad for family vacations.

For those who want the luxury of flying private but can’t afford a whole plane, there’s the fractional ownership model promoted by Delhi-based Club One Air. MD Manav Singh has 25 committed members who’ve bought flying hours from him. “To own and maintain your own jet, you need a surplus of Rs 10 crore a year,” explains Manav. “I offer the luxury of a private plane without the astronomical cost.” Then, there are the fixed costs of maintenance, insurance and fuel. Just to park a midsized corporate plane at the Delhi airport can cost Rs 20 lakh a month. Manav is cautiously optimistic about the future of private planes but feels only people who have businesses that require planes will buy them. “So far, there’s no clear aviation policy for private players in India,” he says. And that’s going to be a huge stumbling block in the future.

... contd.