Ba launches private jets in USA

British Airways may be barred from operating domestic flights in America but that has not stopped the airline from offering its wealthier passengers a fresh way of zipping around the US...

The UK flag-carrier that is reeling from 22 days of strikes is launching an exclusive private jet service for BA passengers flying within North America and the Caribbean.

It has teamed up with CitationAir, the private jet subsidiary of the Cessna Aircraft Company, to offer BA passengers a cut-price route into the private jet market.

An online registration and dedicated phone number allows BA passengers to "pay and go" with a credit card - avoiding the upfront fees and long-term commitment normally associated with private jet hire.

The service, costing $6,000 to $10,000 per plane per hour depending on aircraft type, is available to members of the BA executive club programme, employees of the airline's corporate clients or anyone who has flown with the carrier in the past 12 months.

Robert Boyle, BA's director of strategy and business units, said: "Now we can offer our customers a seamless service to fly when they want and where they want, to almost any destination within the US, Caribbean, Southern Canada and Mexico."

BA, which last year lost a record £531m pre-tax, currently flies to 19 destinations in America and has a tie-up with American Airlines for US domestic flights.

Despite BA's lobbying for a relaxation of US aviation rules, foreign carriers are not permitted to operate domestic flights in America or take control of a US airline.

BA is pursuing regulatory clearance for a transatlantic tie-up with American Airlines and the UK carrier's mooted merger partner Iberia. This would allow the trio to share revenues and co-ordinate ticket prices on BA's most lucrative services between Britain and America.

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk