Safety on every Nashville charter flight
Safety is the first thing we consider for any Nashville charter flight. Before we send you a single option, we check who operates the aircraft, review that operator’s safety and incident history, and confirm that the pilots are experienced and current on the aircraft type you will be flying on.
You are trusting us with everyone on board, whether that is your family, your colleagues, or a touring crew. That is why we do this review before any option reaches you.
Vetting Behind Every Trip
Every operator, aircraft, and crew goes through our internal due diligence before we present any options. Our internal standards meet or exceed what the FAA requires:
- FAR Part 135 charter operators for traditional private aircraft, or FAR Part 121 for airliner-size and group trips (or the foreign equivalent on international legs)
- Operator subscription to Wyvern and ARGUS reviewed where the operator participates.
- Pilot experience and operator incident history reviewed before we recommend an aircraft.
- Fewer than 60 brokers worldwide hold Premium Wyvern Broker Member status, and Air Charter Advisors is one of them.
Wyvern and ARGUS are independent third-party aviation safety organizations. They audit operators and maintain databases of operator safety records, and where an operator participates in one of those programs, we reference the audit as part of our review.
Part 135 is the FAA’s set of rules for on-demand, for-hire charter. It carries stricter operating, crew, and insurance requirements than FAR Part 91, the rules for private, non-commercial flying that cannot be sold as charter.
Crew qualification
FAR Part 135 sets minimum crew requirements by aircraft type, and some aircraft types are certified for single-pilot operations. Rather than make a blanket promise about crew size, we confirm that the pilots assigned to your flight are experienced and current on the specific aircraft type they will be flying on.
Who controls the flight
The certified operator holds operational control of every flight we arrange, and the Pilot in Command makes the final call on departure, routing, and landing. The FAA places that authority with the operator, and maintenance of the aircraft is also the operator’s responsibility under its own certificate.
Our part comes before you book: we review the operator holding that authority, and we present only the operators we are prepared to book you with.
Weather in Middle Tennessee
Weather affects Nashville charter flights in two seasons. Spring and early summer bring thunderstorms, and a strong line of storms can hold departures and arrivals at Nashville airports until it passes. Winter brings the occasional ice storm, and when an aircraft has to be de-iced, that takes time on the ramp before it can depart.
Your advisor monitors conditions ahead of departure. If any changes are required due to weather and passenger safety, you can expect your advisor to reach out as soon as we are aware. Depending on the day, we may recommend expediting departure, delaying, or using an alternate airport, subject to scheduling and aircraft availability.
International trips
Nashville International (BNA) is the only airport in the Nashville area set up for customs, so a flight arriving from abroad lands there before anywhere else in Middle Tennessee. Elsewhere in the state, McGhee Tyson in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Memphis and Tri-Cities also have customs. Customs procedures differ from one airport to the next, and your advisor will confirm what applies to your routing.
On international legs, operators must meet the equivalent safety standards of the country of operation. Landing permits and authorizations are generally applied for after a trip has been secured on the aircraft schedule, and sometimes the timeline is dictated by the local airport authorities. We will always do our best to ensure departure and arrival times meet your needs, but these are sometimes subject to the approvals of the local airport authority and government.
Ask us
If you want to know how the operator on your quote was reviewed before you commit to it, ask your advisor, and we will go through it with you. Call 1-888-987-5387 at any hour, on any day of the year, or send your trip details through our contact page.
Our Nashville charter FAQ page answers the common questions about booking, payment, travel documents and choosing an aircraft.