Private Jet Safety: What the Regulations Actually Say

Chartering means flying under the commercial regime

This is the least understood point in business aviation, and the most important one for a passenger.

European Regulation No 965/2012 distinguishes several operating regimes. Commercial air transport, known as Part-CAT, requires an air operator certificate, the AOC. It is the regime of every airline, and it is also the one a chartered flight runs under. Alongside it, non-commercial operations fall under Part-NCC for complex motor-powered aircraft and Part-NCO for the rest: an owner flying their own aircraft, with no paying passenger, is subject to lighter requirements.

In other words: chartering a private jet through a broker places you under the most demanding regime, the airline one. The same body of rules applies to the crew, the maintenance, the procedures and the oversight. It is an argument rarely put this way, and it is nonetheless the best answer to the question "is it safe?".

The air operator certificate does not expire

A widespread belief holds that an AOC is renewed every year, or every two to three years. That is inaccurate under the European regime.

The Spanish aviation safety authority, a national authority of the Union, states it without ambiguity: "Approval is granted for an indefinite period of time and is subject to continuous supervision". The approval is granted for an indefinite period, but it is subject to continuous supervision.

The distinction is not cosmetic, and it is more demanding than the old model, not less. A time-limited certificate is checked at a known deadline. A certificate of indefinite duration under continuous supervision means the operator is auditable at any moment, and that a failing can lead to a restriction, a suspension or a withdrawal without waiting for a renewal date. The operator must demonstrate at all times that it retains the professional capability and the means required to operate its fleet.

Our article on how a private jet operator is certified sets out the process.

Crews are checked twice a year, not once

A commercial pilot lives under a regime of permanent verification, along two distinct axes.

Medical fitness. The class 1 medical certificate, which is mandatory, is valid for twelve months. That drops to six months from the age of 60, and to six months from 40 for single-pilot commercial passenger operations. The examination covers vision, hearing, cardiac function, neurological and psychological condition, with substance screening. Any anomaly leads to a suspension, temporary or permanent.

Technical proficiency. This is the point most often misstated. The operator proficiency check, the OPC, has a validity of six calendar months in commercial transport. A pilot therefore sits a simulator check twice a year, on failure scenarios, degraded weather and emergency procedures that most of them have never encountered in real flight. On top of that come type ratings, recurrent training and line checks.

For perspective: no other transport profession puts its operators through a full technical assessment every six months.

Aircraft maintenance

The comparison with a car's roadworthiness test, often used, considerably understates the reality.

Every aircraft follows an approved maintenance programme, specific to its type and validated by the authority of its country of registration. Tasks are triggered by three simultaneous counters: flight hours, cycles, meaning the number of takeoffs and landings, and the calendar. A part can be removed while working perfectly, simply because it has reached its life limit.

On business jets, the A, B, C and D check split inherited from airline operations no longer reflects reality: manufacturers publish programmes specific to each type, structured by intervals. Traceability, however, is absolute. Every task is recorded, every part identified, and work can only be carried out by approved facilities.

That is also what explains the spread of hourly cost maintenance programmes, which smooth the expense and make an aircraft's history verifiable at resale. According to JSSI, as of March 2024, more than 80% of midsize and large-cabin aircraft delivered new over the previous five years were covered by such a programme.

What the European statistics actually say

The EASA annual safety review for 2024 gives the orders of magnitude.

European traffic exceeded 7.7 million flights in 2024, operated by 623 air operator certificate holders. Three fatal accidents across that volume place commercial transport in a risk category with no equivalent among modes of transport.

One reading note, because it matters: general aviation covers highly varied activities, from leisure flying on a single-engine aircraft to flight training. Comparing its 27 accidents with the 3 in commercial transport does not say that one jet is safer than another jet. It says that the operating regime, not the aircraft, is the primary safety factor.

The real in-flight risk comes down to a seat belt

Ask where injuries actually occur in commercial transport, and the answer is documented, and surprising.

The US NTSB report covering 2009 to 2018 establishes that turbulence is the leading cause of accidents in US commercial air transport, at 37.6% of cases. Over ten years: 123 serious injuries, of which 97 were cabin crew, the only people standing, and 26 passengers. No pilot was seriously injured across the whole period. In 95.5% of cases the aircraft sustained no damage.

And the most actionable fact in the whole set: of the 26 passengers seriously injured over ten years, only one was wearing a seat belt. Our article on atmospheric turbulence covers the data in full. The guidance applies identically in a private cabin, where people move around more: belt fastened in cruise, even without the sign lit.

What a broker checks before proposing an aircraft

The regulatory framework sets a floor. The broker's job is to select above that floor, since not all AOC holders are equal.

• The validity and scope of the AOC: a certificate authorises defined operations, on defined types, in defined areas.
• Insurance cover, its limits and its geographical extent.
• The aircraft itself: age, maintenance history, programme coverage, safety and navigation equipment.
• The crew: experience on type, on the destination and on demanding airfields, in the mountains or on short approaches.
• The operator's record and its operational reputation.

This filtering is what separates a broker from a price comparison site. A quote 15% lower sometimes corresponds to an older aircraft, a crew less experienced at the airfield in question, or narrower insurance. Those differences do not show on a quote, and it is precisely our role to document them before you have to choose.

Our article on organising a private flight describes the checks that follow the selection.

IBC Aviation private jet charter:

As an independent broker we hold no fleet of our own: for every flight we select the certified operator best suited to your itinerary. Our teams advise you on the private jet best suited to your itinerary and your requirements, and arrange your flight to or from any destination. Available 24/7:

• France: +33 1 41 69 88 88
• Switzerland: +41 22 880 28 88
• Dubai: +971 55 303 5161
• Bangkok: +66 81 808 2866
• Email: contact@ibc-aviation.com

Frequently asked questions

Is flying by private jet as safe as flying with an airline?

When the flight is chartered, it operates under the commercial air transport regime, Part-CAT of European Regulation No 965/2012, the very one that applies to airlines. The operator holds an air operator certificate, its crews sit the same checks and its aircraft follow an approved maintenance programme. In 2024, Europe recorded 3 fatal accidents in commercial air transport across more than 7.7 million flights.

Does the air operator certificate have to be renewed every year?

No. Under the European regime, approval is granted for an indefinite period and is subject to continuous supervision. That is more demanding than a periodic renewal: the operator is auditable at any moment and a failing can lead to a restriction, a suspension or a withdrawal without waiting for a deadline.

How often are pilots checked?

Along two axes. The class 1 medical certificate is valid for twelve months, six months from the age of 60 and six months from 40 for single-pilot commercial passenger operations. The operator proficiency check, carried out in a simulator, has a validity of six calendar months: a commercial pilot is therefore assessed technically twice a year.

What separates a chartered flight from an owner's flight?

The regulatory regime. A chartered flight falls under commercial air transport and requires an air operator certificate. An owner flying their own aircraft, with no paying passenger, falls under Part-NCC for complex motor-powered aircraft or Part-NCO for the rest, with lighter requirements. Going through a broker therefore places the flight under the most demanding regime.

What is the main risk of injury on board?

Turbulence, and it can be prevented. Over 2009 to 2018 the US NTSB recorded 123 serious injuries in US commercial air transport, of which 97 were cabin crew, standing as their job requires, and 26 passengers. Of those 26 passengers, only one was wearing a seat belt. In 95.5% of cases the aircraft sustained no damage.