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The VIP Seat: Private Aviation News
by Jessie Naor and Preston Holland | Experts in Private and Corporate Aviation
Join Jessie Naor and Preston Holland on The VIP Seat for the latest insights in private aviation, covering business aviation trends, private jet reviews, and more. We break down the biggest stories of the week in corporate aviation, from jet charter trends and Part 135 shenanigans to aviation safety news that the big players hope you'll miss. Expect hot takes, sharp analysis, and real talk with industry insiders, operators, and disruptors. Whether you’re flying private or an industry insider, buckle up and let's take off.
Episodes
REAL Jet: Beyond the Booth
30 Oct 2026 · 23 min
What should private flyers know before putting money into a jet card—and what does it take to build a brand they can trust? Preston Holland and Jessie close out this week’s Beyond the Booth series at NBAA-BACE 2026 with Kenny and Robert of RealJet, recorded onboard the very bus that hosted the…
Jet OUT: Beyond the Booth
29 Oct 2026 · 23 min
How do you make the economics of light jets work? Preston Holland sits down with Matt Wild and Joe Crivello of Jet OUT at NBAA-BACE 2026 to explore the company’s answer: a single-type fleet, a network of local bases, and a day-based co-ownership model built around how customers actually use their…
Thrive Aviation: Beyond the Booth
29 Oct 2026 · 22 min
What happens when Honda partners with an established private jet operator to build a fractional ownership program? Preston Holland and Jessie Naor sit down with Curtis Edenfield of Thrive Aviation at NBAA-BACE 2026 to unpack the partnership and why it’s about more than adding HondaJets to the…
Leviate Air Group: Beyond the Booth Series
28 Oct 2026 · 25 min
Preston Holland sits down with Luis Barros and Randall Mize of Leviate Air Group for a candid conversation about buying, selling, managing, and growing in today’s private aviation market. Recorded at NBAA-BACE 2026 for The VIP Seat’s Beyond the Booth series, this episode explores how Leviate…
SyberJet Gets Fired Up, Pratt & Whitney's New Engine
28 Oct 2026 · 30 min
SyberJet brought the lasers. Operators brought their frustrations with FBO fees. And we came home from NBAA-BACE 2026 with a few questions that didn’t get answered onstage. This week on The VIP Seat, Jessie and Preston unpack Trevor Milton’s SyberJet relaunch, from the mock-up and ambitious…
The History of NBAA BACE
19 Oct 2026 · 37 min
Is NBAA-BACE still an airplane-buying show, or has it become a B2B convention with a static display? And is charter demand really growing, or are bots just getting better at requesting quotes? Ahead of NBAA-BACE 2026 in Las Vegas, Jessie and Preston trace the show’s roots from a small group of…
Meth Jet, Rogue Pilots, and Fortune Gets BizAv Wrong
14 Oct 2026 · 31 min
521 kilos of crystal meth on a 1986 Learjet 55B, a rise in rogue pilot incidents on the flight deck, and Fortune taking another swing at business aviation. This week Jessie and Preston break down the Meth Jet bust in Laos, what the flydubai attack says about pilot mental health and cockpit…
Catheters to Private Jets: Flyte Aviation’s Wild Pivot
7 Oct 2026 · 30 min
What do private jets and catheters have in common? Apparently, a publicly traded parent company. This week on The VIP Seat, Jessie Naor and Preston Holland unpack Catheter Precision’s rebrand as Flyte Aviation, trading under VJET on the NYSE American—and the unusual combination of private aviation…
Citation Single-Pilot Exemption, OneFlight and ExcelAire Challenges
30 Sept 2026 · 32 min
The FAA has ended the single-pilot exemption pathway for several legacy Cessna Citation models, creating an immediate operational and economic issue for affected aircraft owners, contract pilots and charter operators. In this episode of The VIP Seat , Jessie Naor and Preston Holland break down…
Canada Bonus Depreciation, HondaJet Echelon Slip, and Steve Varsano Says the Calls Are Real
23 Sept 2026 · 34 min
Are Steve Varsano's viral phone calls real or staged? We finally asked. In part two of our conversation, recorded live from the A319 cabin mockup at The Jet Business in London, Flexjet Chairman Kenn Ricci and Steve Varsano go through the deal from the buyer's side. They cover who pitched it (over…
Kenn Ricci Says the Private Aviation Industry is No Longer Aligned
17 Sept 2026 · 26 min
Is private aviation really one industry anymore? In this special edition of The VIP Seat, Kenn Ricci argues that the interests of charter operators, aircraft manufacturers and FBOs are increasingly pulling in different directions — while the organizations lobbying Washington have traditionally…
One Priester, OneFlight Questions, and Flexjet’s London Bet
16 Sept 2026 · 30 min
This week on The VIP Seat , we unpack who is gaining control across business aviation—from airport policy and FBO economics to charter platforms, premium terminals, and cockpit safety culture. Chris Rocheleau is leaving NBAA to lead Airports Council International–North America, putting a former…
Trump Targets Bombardier, Honda Backs Thrive & L.A. County Hunts Private Jet Taxes
9 Sept 2026 · 30 min
Trump is taking aim at Bombardier again—threatening to stop the Canadian manufacturer from selling aircraft in the United States unless it builds more of them on U.S. soil. But is this a real policy move, another tariff negotiating tactic, or both? And what could it mean for Global and Challenger…
Vista Global's $10B IPO Pitch, Atlantic Aviation Sells Again
2 Sept 2026 · 36 min
Vista Global is reportedly eyeing a European IPO that could raise over $1 billion at a valuation north of $10 billion, and Jessie and Preston break down what that means against a $600 million RRJ Capital investment, looming 2027 debt, and how Vista's 2025 flight hours stack up against NetJets and…
Sky Harbour CEO on Hangar Shortages, Ground Leases, and Wall Street
26 Aug 2026 · 1 h 09
Every general aviation airport in America is owned by a city or a county, and almost none of them can afford to build you a hangar. That is not a market failure. That is the system working exactly as it was designed. This week on The VIP Seat, Jessie and Preston sit down with Tal Kenan, Founder…
flyExclusive Q2 Results, LA Goes After Private Jet Tax Revenue
19 Aug 2026 · 31 min
flyExclusive reported a $111 million Q2, but behind the headline are improving margins, positive adjusted EBITDA, a complicated capital structure, and a $5 million loan carrying a stated 26.5% rate. This week on The VIP Seat , Jessie Naor and Preston Holland break down flyExclusive’s Q2 2026…
Solairus Aviation Gets Bigger, Wheels Up Still in a Turnaround?
12 Aug 2026 · 31 min
Is Wheels Up finally building momentum—or simply burning more runway? We break down their latest financial release (not financial advice!). This week, we battle it out over the Wheels Up Q2 results. The fleet transition is done early, the premium operation is more reliable, and management has put…
Inside the Mind of a Jet Owner: XplusLuxe on What Operators Get Wrong With Private Fliers
5 Aug 2026 · 1 h 11
An anonymous, but infamous, aircraft owner known as XPlusLuxe joins The VIP Seat Podcast for one of our most fascinating conversations yet. Known online for his legendary aircraft collection and viral aviation content, “Mr. T” shares what he’s learned after building a fleet of private jets—and why…
$3B Bombardier Order, NYC Helicopter Bird Strike?
29 Jul 2026 · 32 min
Saudi Arabia’s The Helicopter Company, backed by the PIF, signs a Farnborough LOI with Bombardier for a firm order of 12 Challenger and Global jets plus options that could take the deal to around $2.8–3B and up to 60 aircraft. We break down FlyExclusive’s latest Jet Club press release, with record…
Seized Cessna in the Supreme Court, World Cup Business Aviation Miles
22 Jul 2026 · 36 min
This week, Preston joins live from EAA AirVenture Oshkosh with news on Emily Deaton's move to NBAA and show updates. Then: a 14-year-old bush pilot case out of Alaska heads to the U.S. Supreme Court over a six-pack of beer and a seized Cessna, a viral air traffic control exchange reignites the…