Flying on our own private jet seems like a dream for most of us and would only happen if we won the lottery, but ‘empty leg’ flights present an interesting opportunity for business use.

Empty legs are flights that are due to operate without any passengers as the private jet repositions back to its base, or is going elsewhere to be ready for its next assignment.

The prices for empty leg journeys on private jets can be significantly lower than booking a usual full price fare.

Operators will often offer heavily discounted prices or charge one-way pricing for empty leg private jet flights, as they’d rather have some paying passengers on board – no matter how small the profit – than no one at all.

Take this as an example. If I fly with nine colleagues from Oxford to Nice on May 22nd, the flight is priced as low as £450 per person. What’s more, Oxford airport is conveniently located 20 minutes from my home. In contrast, British Airways business class fares from Heathrow to Nice are £659.

Discounted short-haul fares are dependent on passengers being prepared to show flexibility and book at short notice, but discounted prices for longer-haul routes are often offered months in advance.

In another example, a flight from London to New York on 30th May in a Gulfstream jet costs £3,611 per person based on a group of 18 people travelling together.

The fare with British Airways, meanwhile, is £5,161 per person travelling business class, though your company may have lower negotiated fares.

The good news is, when you fly by private jet, you can show up at the airport minutes before takeoff, the security process happens in an instant, and you can bring a pet and eat off fine china.

On the downside, although the DOT and FAA do their best in reviewing and enforcing practices, and there is no industry entry requirement, government quality rating or broker seal of approval for these services.

A private charter flier therefore assumes their own risk in choosing and using a private jet and charter service.