Safety · A guide for charter clients
Private aviation is safe when the operator, the aircraft and the crew are properly chosen. It is not airline-level by default. This is the checklist we use on every booking, published so you can put the same questions to any broker, including us.
Why this matters
Clients often ask how they are protected when they book a private flight, and the honest answer is that it depends on who operates it. The rules that apply, the audits the operator has passed, the crew, the aircraft and its maintenance can all be checked before you pay. Here is what should be checked, and what we check, on every flight we arrange.
Commercial charter. The operator holds an FAA air carrier certificate and must meet standards for pilot training and checking, duty and rest limits, maintenance programs and management oversight. This is the minimum for any flight we arrange.
Non-commercial flying by an owner for their own purposes. Fewer rules on training, duty time and maintenance, and no oversight of a commercial operation, because there is not meant to be one.
A seat or an aircraft sold to the public but flown under Part 91 rules, often through an owner or a management company. It is illegal, usually uninsured for commercial carriage, and the protections of Part 135 do not apply. If nobody can tell you who holds operational control, walk away.
The checklist
Any reputable broker or operator will answer every one of these without hesitation. Hesitation is itself an answer.
Crew
Part 135 sets minimums for training, recurrent checks and rest. Audited operators go further, with their own minimums for total time and time in type, and a flight-risk assessment before every departure that weighs weather, icing, runway and crew fatigue. We ask operators for those minimums and the assessment process, and we expect two pilots on every jet flight.
Aircraft
Before the crew inspects the aircraft on the ramp, we have already confirmed that the tail number is on the operator's certificate, what maintenance program it is on and who performs the work, the aircraft's age and registration, and the NTSB record for the operator and the airframe.
Maintenance
A business jet on a manufacturer-recommended or equivalent program has every inspection, life-limited part and airworthiness directive tracked. We ask which program the aircraft is on and who does the work. An operator that cannot answer that quickly is not one we book.
Independent audits
Three organisations audit charter operators independently. The higher tiers involve an on-site audit of the safety management system, pilot records, training and maintenance. Ask for the tier and the audit date, and verify it in the public registry.
Gold, Gold Plus and Platinum. Platinum requires an on-site audit and a functioning safety management system with an emergency response plan. Gold is a records-based rating. The registry is public.
Registered and Wingman. Wingman is the audited standard, covering pilot experience, training, maintenance and SMS. Wyvern also produces trip-specific safety reports on request.
The International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations, Stages 1 to 3. Stage 2 shows the safety system is working; Stage 3 that it is embedded in the culture. Common among the strongest operators worldwide.
What Ravello Jets does
Ravello Jets is an air charter broker under 14 CFR Part 295. We do not operate aircraft, and we do not present an operator to you until it has passed these checks. Our full standard is published here.
| Step | What we check | What you receive |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate | The operator's FAA Part 135 certificate (or Canadian or EASA equivalent) is current, and the tail number is on its operations specifications. | On-demand charter: the operator's legal name and certificate number on your quotation and charter agreement before you pay. Marketplace empty legs: the operator's audit standing before you book, and the operator's name, certificate and tail number with your booking confirmation as soon as payment is received, with a full refund if the operator cannot be confirmed. |
| Audit | Current ARG/US, Wyvern or IS-BAO standing. For operators we vet directly, the tier and the audit date, checked against the registry. For marketplace empty legs, the audit flags published for the operator. | The rating, shown on the flight and stated on request. |
| Insurance | Hull and liability coverage in force for your date, at a level appropriate to the aircraft and passengers. | Confirmation on your booking; the certificate of insurance on request. |
| Crew and trip | Two pilots on every jet flight. The operator's pilot minimums and flight-risk assessment process. A commercial pilot on our team reviews the trip for crew duty, runway performance and weather exposure. | Any concern raised with you before you confirm. |
| History | NTSB records for the operator and the tail number. | Anything relevant disclosed to you. |
| Changes | If the operator or aircraft changes after booking, the checks are run again. | The change disclosed in writing before departure. |
Red flags
Common questions
Charter flown by an FAA Part 135 operator is held to airline-style rules on pilot training, duty time, maintenance and oversight, and operators audited by ARGUS, Wyvern or IS-BAO go further. Safety still varies between operators, which is why the operator, the aircraft and the crew should be checked before every flight rather than assumed.
Part 135 governs commercial charter: the operator holds an FAA air carrier certificate and must meet standards for training, duty and rest limits, maintenance programs and management. Part 91 covers private, non-commercial flying by an owner. A flight sold to the public but flown under Part 91 is an illegal or "grey" charter and carries none of the Part 135 protections.
Ask for the operator's legal name and FAA certificate number, then ask for the page of its operations specifications (the D085 aircraft list) showing the tail number you will fly on. A reputable operator or broker provides this without hesitation. Ravello Jets confirms this before naming the aircraft on your booking.
They are independent audits that go beyond the FAA minimum. ARGUS rates operators Gold, Gold Plus or Platinum; Wyvern offers Registered and Wingman; IS-BAO has Stages 1 to 3. The higher tiers involve an on-site audit of the safety management system, pilot records, training and maintenance. Ask for the tier and the audit date, and check it in the public registry, because "ARGUS-rated" on its own says little.
Yes, and you should. Reasonable questions are total flight time, time in the aircraft type, whether both pilots are type-rated, and how the operator assesses risk for each flight, including weather and icing. Two experienced pilots on every jet flight is the standard Ravello Jets works to.
The NTSB publishes its investigation records in a public database (CAROL) searchable by operator name and registration. Ravello Jets checks it for the operator and the tail number before confirming a flight.
No. Ravello Jets Inc. is an air charter broker under U.S. DOT 14 CFR Part 295. We arrange the flight and vet the operator; the certificated air carrier named on your booking has full operational control of the aircraft, crew and flight.
