Operator or broker: know who flies you
An operator owns or manages aircraft and holds an air operator certificate (an EASA AOC in Europe, FAA Part 135 in the United States). A broker, like Atljet, holds no aircraft: it searches the operators, compares them and contracts the flight on your behalf. Both are legitimate. What matters is that the contract names the operator who will fly you, with its certificate number.
A broker that works across many operators can find the aircraft actually available on your date and route, often closer to you and with less positioning. An operator can only offer its own fleet. Ask either one the same question: which company, which aircraft, which registration.
Safety: the certificate and the audits
The certificate is the legal minimum. Beyond it, serious operators are audited by independent programmes such as ARGUS, Wyvern and IS-BAO, which review crew training, maintenance and safety management. Ask which audits the operator holds and when they were last renewed.
Be wary of a price far below the market. Illegal charter, a private aircraft flown for hire without a certificate, usually looks cheaper because it skips the obligations that keep a flight safe and insured.
What a real quote contains
A real quote names the aircraft type, the year and seats, the operator, the flight time, the airports and every fee: positioning, landing and handling, passenger taxes, catering, de-icing when the season requires it. A price without an aircraft is a placeholder.
Atljet shows an honest indicative range in minutes, computed on airway distance, block time and airport fees, then confirms the aircraft, its registration and the final price within the hour. You can check how the numbers are built in the Atljet Private Jet Price Index.
Service: who answers at three in the morning
Private aviation is a service business. Plans change, weather closes airports, a passenger is late. Ask who handles the flight on the day, how you reach them, and whether changes are managed in writing.
At Atljet the request, the options, the confirmation and every change live on one private page, with a flight desk that answers around the clock.