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WSJ declares war on bizav
If there remained any doubt after its February 14 piece on the alleged excesses of “Air Bloomberg", The Wall Street Journal effectively declared hostilities on business aviation last month. With “Corporate Jet Set: Leisure vs. Business” (June 16), the unveiling of the online “WSJ JetTracker” (June 16) and “Ready for Departure: M&A Airlines” (June 17), the paper paints a picture of corporate jets as expensive, wasteful, abused perks for, oddly enough, the same people who have built its… (www.ainonline.com) Más...Sort type: [Top] [Newest]
I am happy if executive jets are used to conduct company business, and I am also happy if executive aircraft are used to take execs on vacation IF THEY PAY FOR IT! I guess I am a Marxist on the subject of corporate aircraft flying on personal use boondoggles at taxpayer or shareholder expense.
While on the subject did we mention the "special interests of the defense industry". To refresh memories I would like to invite you to watch excerpts of the famous Eisenhower farewell words on Jan. 17, 1961 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8y06NSBBRtY Just one isolated and not so minor example: the cost of the Lockheed Martin JSF F-35 figher jet plane. The initial contract called for a unit price in the range of $ 60 million; I read in a recent article in the Aviation Week & ST magazine that the unit price is now temporarily set at $ 115 million and counting. And examples like this abound. Something has to be done. Again, no need to raise taxes, just use it judiciously.
Business aircraft are tools. Smart businesses use the right tool for the job at hand. Moving district managers from the central office to the provinces so they can oversee the stores in their district is a smart use of a jet airplane. Lolly gagging around the country showing off your glamorous wealth to your equally rich buddies in a corporate jet, expenses for which are paid for with stock holder cash and written off on the books as "market research"....well I think you get the point.
Few points....First, it is no one's damned business who spends what and on what.That said, this "corporate jet" thing is an attempt by the political Left to create class envy.
Many people who own private aircraft and people who are in the market for private aircraft are former users of commercial aviation, but have become intolerant of the hassles involving flying commercially. If I could afford to purchase my own aircraft, I would eschew commercial.
Private and corporate aviation creates jobs from aviators to technicians to assembly workers.
Many people who own private aircraft and people who are in the market for private aircraft are former users of commercial aviation, but have become intolerant of the hassles involving flying commercially. If I could afford to purchase my own aircraft, I would eschew commercial.
Private and corporate aviation creates jobs from aviators to technicians to assembly workers.
To be fair, there's been plenty of bad policies spurred by interest group pressure and foolish, blind loyalty to supporters by politicians from both sides of the aisle in the past decade. For every Obama-care it seems like there's a Hurricane Katrina (apples and oranges of course, but you get the point).
@Chalet - I AGREE WITH YOU my friend regarding your statment of the "root of the problem"! It is political pressure from every direction that prevents anything of substance to be acomplished in Washington today. Whether its the farm lobby, the seniors lobby, the union lobby, the (enter your favorite here) lobby, if anything at all gets done, it's usually a mishmash of worthless crap that all of us real people have to deal with (can you say Obama-Care?).
Thank you Dennis, I was about to ask the same question (the one about comany cars). It's nice to know there are a few people here who are interested in a reasoned analysis instead of simply sticking to their own political suppositions, facts be-damned, and call you names if you disagree.