Lobbyist Corrects Record with BizJet Use Under Fire in Corporate Media

Score one for our side... National Business Aviation Association head Ed Bolen issued a letter responding to a Wall Street Journal article on the increase of corporate jet use for executives called "The $65 million Perk for CEOs: Personal Use of the Corporate Jet Has Soared".

In a letter to the Journal, Bolen said that the article "missed a broader point about business in the pandemic's aftermath, and why companies understandably allow for such use".

"The fact is, the post-COVID business landscape is as competitive and rapidly changing as ever, requiring all company activities, including travel, to optimize efficiency, productivity and flexibility. Similarly, competition to attract, invest in and retain key employees – including with solutions for seamlessly meeting both personal and business obligations – is as intense as it has ever been."

He says that companies get plenty of use and value out of their jet investments, saying that "employees have an unmatched ability to schedule multi-stop business trips, promptly respond to unforeseen opportunities and meet unexpected customer needs, while remaining quickly available for travel to meet personal commitments." Bolen says that simply having a flight department is a "capability that sharpens a company’s competitive edge and increases shareholder value, while protecting key employees’ security and safeguarding against corporate espionage."

Additionally, the NBAA letter notes that travel is "travel is typically made with the full approval of directors serving on boards". "In other words," Bolen ends, "the reality your story failed to explain is that a company’s decision to allow for the use of an airplane to meet myriad travel challenges is simply good business."

Attaboy, Ed... 

FMI: www.nbaa.org