How has the charter broker landscape evolved since 2010?
The role of a charter broker has remained largely the same, however, the industry has been faced with different challenges and developments during this time and the role of the broker has grown. The range of clients using charter services is becoming increasingly diverse, with a broader range of people realising its value and efficiency. Increasing levels of regulation being implemented by governments and civil aviation authorities around areas such as border security, trade, safety, the environment and more, have made the air charter broker a hugely valuable asset as they provide the professional expertise and knowledge to guide travel bookers and advise on the most suitable, legal and competitive solutions. The process checks and arrangements that need to be made to coordinate a charter flight have significantly increased in recent years, making the broker a vital part of the process. Working with operators to make all the necessary arrangements, when things go wrong—which they frequently do, including inclement weather, technical failure, government permit issues and busy airport slots, the broker is able to support with solutions to ensure travellers are still able to reach their destination. As a leading industry association, The ACA works to advise member companies when regulatory changes arise, or are planned, and what will be required, which allows our members to effectively support their clients.
What have been the most significant changes in charter customer demographics and demands over the past 15 years?
Although formal figures are difficult to identify simply due to the confidentiality our industry prides itself on, feedback from our members show there have been changes to the demographics. Overall, a trend has been an increasing number of younger travelers utilizing air charter. This is not unexpected as the vast majority of air charter flights are for business travel and the demographics mirror business changes, with technical industries developing younger c-suite executives who are using air charter to support their business travel.
Access is a big driver of this business travel and business aviation serves twice as many city pairs compared with scheduled services – which have not recovered their networks post-pandemic, often meaning air charter is the only solution to fly directly to a specific destination.
How has The ACA’s role in the industry evolved during the last 15 years?
The ACA has transformed in recent years from being a networking organization to becoming the leading global trade body for air charter. We have taken a more proactive role with a focus on growing the Association’s international presence and expanding its contribution to the wider air charter industry. Over the past ten years, membership has grown significantly and as of February 2025, it now has 435 member companies, with 53% of members outside the UK. This was a key part of our strategy, providing a network of accredited professional member companies across the world.
The ACA rebranded in 2019 to reflect the Association’s increasing drive towards being seen as a global entity, capable of delivering value to members in countries around the world. At the point of the rebrand in 2019, The ACA had just 250 members. Following this, we have created member resources on sustainability and international regulations as well as developed professional training qualifications. Last year, we made the first part of this available as an online course available to all members worldwide.
We have seen our role develop in the industry, with an increased focus on supporting and developing the next generation of young professionals and helping them to understand the variety of opportunities and careers available within the air charter sector. The ACA has delivered increasing outreach via engagement with colleges and universities, alongside our internship program which offers both theoretical training and practical work experience, and which we are confident will continue to grow.
With the rise of various booking platforms and apps, how do you see the role of traditional charter brokers evolving?
Technology and booking platforms play an important part in growing the industry and provide a familiar access point for younger generations of travel bookers.
While the development of platforms and apps make the charter process more efficient, technology will never be able to replace the essential human touch that charter brokers bring to arranging aircraft charters. Booking charter flights is a complex travel management function with a large number of moving parts, and technology cannot substitute an individual’s wealth of knowledge and expertise. These are irreplaceable when it comes to assessing the technical requirements with permits, NOTAMS, weather conditions, taxation and complex itineraries, alongside multiple time zones and fine details such as bespoke catering. As legislation has made air charter more complex in recent years, the role of the traditional broker as a professional advisor has never been more valuable.
How is the charter sector addressing sustainability concerns?
Sustainability is a hugely important topic for the industry. The air charter sector has been leading the change and process to sustainable aviation for many years now. The UK DfT Jet Zero Consultation in 2021 confirmed that between 2010 and 2019, the industry achieved a 20% reduction in emissions due to efficiency improvements and is continuing at a 2% reduction per annum. The air charter industry has led technology development to improve sustainability, with the first use of composite materials and winglets to improve fuel efficiency. In November 2023, the first transatlantic flight using 100% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) was operated by Gulfstream.
The Net Zero 2050 targets and SAF mandates which have come into force across many countries, including the UK, continue to be an industry focus. For example, from 2025 the UK government has mandated that 2% of all jet fuel must be sustainably sourced. The emergence of SAF could be an effective means of helping the aviation sector to decarbonise, however, one of the main barriers to achieving this is a lack of reliable supply. To make SAF a viable alternative to traditional jet fuel, significant investment into SAF production and infrastructure is required, in order to create a reliable supply chain that ensures SAF is widely available at all airports. The Powering up Britain: Net Zero Growth Plan published in 2023 highlights the potential for creating 65,000 jobs by the UK SAF industry by 2050, bringing a £1.9 billion direct GVA per annum to the country.
One of the immediate tools the industry has in place to address sustainability concerns is carbon offsetting. The majority of our members have an emissions offsetting scheme, starting with an opt-in policy where clients have the option to pay to offset the CO2e footprint of their journey. Over the past several years, The ACA has been encouraging the concept of opt-out, where offsetting is included as a standard within the charter contract, and it is specifically up to the client to choose to opt out. Some of our members have also gone a step further and offset all charter flights as standard, some even by 200%. Additionally, many charter companies employ full time sustainability officers and are looking to reduce their energy consumption, environmental footprint at their facilities and most importantly, aircraft emissions.
The ACA has taken steps in recent years, through its sustainability and innovation working group to ensure it presents a positive example to the charter industry and is a carbon neutral company. Working with sustainability partner 4AIR, The ACA has been offsetting all events and company operations. We also joined the UK DfT led Jet Zero Council and supported the work done to plan the continued transition of aviation to a zero-emission future.
What changes do you anticipate in charter broker qualifications and standards over the next 15 years?
The ACA is keen to ensure that the already high standards maintained by member companies continue long into the future, which is why the Association felt it was important to launch its accredited Air Charter Broker Qualification, back in 2021. Since then, The ACA has hired a full-time training manager to oversee and deliver this course, all whilst ensuring the Association has greater capacity to expand its training offering. The course is designed to provide individuals with the knowledge they will need to succeed as an air charter broker and ensures that brokers are aware of the industry best practices as set out by The ACA. The training resources delivered within the Air Charter Broker Qualification provide excellent value in supporting members to upskill new staff, as well as allowing more experienced brokers to refresh their knowledge. In 2024, the Association launched the first stage as an online training course to allow global member access to this training, and is working on additional courses this year that will support other types of members.
Over the next 15 years, I think training and best practice will remain a key priority for member companies and the industry. As more and more brokers achieve The ACA qualification, it will grow in recognition, and I expect it to become a requirement for professional development in the industry.
What role do you see The ACA playing in shaping the future of air charter?
The ACA provides an important role in advising and educating the industry. We lead industry self-regulation, promote the best supply chain relationships and our members are accredited as experienced and trustworthy professionals. The ACA is the “go-to” source of industry information, proactively representing our members to government and regulators, providing expert guidance, support and training, and organising unrivalled networking events.
As The ACA’s membership continues to grow internationally, we will be able to employ more resource to expand our reach and influence and deliver even greater value to our members. Currently, we have 435 member companies in over 60 different countries and are growing at between 5 and 8 new member companies every month. This growth will enable us to connect professionals in the industry, support them with training and information, while growing the industry through our continued efforts to encourage young professionals, both in the industry and the next generation, to understand the opportunities and look at a career in air charter, through college and university engagement as well as our internship program.
How have charter industry standards evolved, and what further developments do you anticipate?
The charter industry has very high standards as a whole, due to the highly regulated operational side of aviation. There are many restrictions and rules that must be followed in planning and operating flights. Operators must be commercially licensed, have aircraft insured and with certified maintenance. These requirements are the core structure that underpins the safety of the industry.
There are occasions where individuals and companies break the rules and operate illegal charter flights, a dangerous practice which although rare, continues. We created ‘Fly Legal Day’ every January to focus attention on this and educate travellers of the dangers as well as provide a reporting tool for anyone to report suspicions which we then take to the relevant authorities. This has been very successful in raising awareness across the world and focusing a spotlight on any who look to break the rules.
In the future, we will continue with this work and through our education and training, we will continue to ensure that standards and best practice evolve with the industry to maintain the highest levels of service that travellers experience.
