Private jet charter in Ponta Delgada

A light jet leaves a London airfield after breakfast and is in the middle of the North Atlantic before lunch, and that is only the first surprise of Ponta Delgada. The second is how much one airport is asked to do: it is the gateway to the largest of the nine Azorean islands, a fuel and customs stop for aircraft crossing the ocean, and the starting point for flights to the other islands, all from a single asphalt runway 2,323 m long. Private Jets UK plans each charter around those three jobs. Our customers have access to 6,500 jets of all types and configurations available for rent. We will help you choose the best option based on your needs and objectives. Our catalog contains the models from the largest manufacturers: Gulfstream, Dassault, Embraer, Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier, Learjet, Cessna, Beechcraft, Pilatus, HondaJet, etc. We have established partnerships with the world's largest airlines and VIP terminals, which means we can offer you favourable flight conditions and a high level of service. Our experts will manage the organization of your flight - starting with paperwork, agreements, etc., and ending with a transfer and meeting at the airport. Our company provides a full range of business aviation and concierge services. The terminal stands only 2 km from the old town, so the city is one of the easiest arrivals in Europe, and the hot springs, the crater lakes and the whales are an hour's drive or less from the apron.

At your request, the aviation consultants of Private Jets UK will help you choose the jet with the suitable technical parameters (production year, flight hours, and home base). The cost of the private jet charter in Ponta Delgada depends on many factors, such as the model of the business jet, the number of passengers, departure and destination airports, type of flight, duration of parking, additional services, etc. Therefore, we calculate the price of each order individually taking into account your wishes. You can use an online calculator to get an instant charter quote. Please indicate your real contact details to get the final calculation.

You can calculate the cost of your flight in several ways:

• using an online calculator on the website (however, it shows only the approximate price);
• via Messenger (WhatsApp or Telegram);
• by landline or cell phone;
• via e-mail (jets@private-jets.co.uk).

Please note that the above-mentioned price is indicative only. It is calculated on this basis: a departure from Farnborough, an Embraer Phenom 300E and two passengers aboard. If you want to get a personal quote, just fill out the online booking form below. Our aviation consultant will make the calculation within 20 minutes, and then contact you to specify the details of the flight.

Flight time from London to Ponta Delgada airport

A Phenom 300E needs about 3 h 35 min from Farnborough to Ponta Delgada, and the watch goes back an hour on the way, because the Azores keep UTC-1 in winter and UTC in summer, which makes them one hour behind Britain all year round. The fields we use lie 1,301 to 1,481 nautical miles from the island, a distance a light jet covers with a wide margin. The table gives the sector from each of them.

Prices for the private jet flights to Ponta Delgada

One-way prices into Ponta Delgada, cheapest first. The Santo Cristo weekend and the summer months can price above these figures, and the calendar block further down says when.

Nearly all of a quote is flight hours, so the size of the aircraft sets the number. From Biggin Hill, one way, a Phenom 300E costs £18,150, a Citation XLS+ £22,550, a Challenger 350 £27,900 and a Gulfstream G450 £39,700. The written offer then adds landing and handling at the island, the Portuguese carbon tax charged on each departing passenger and any night-stop for the crew.

We can arrange the flights from any cities in the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) and European countries. Due to a large database of available business jets, we can help you find an optimal jet and crew. If you have any questions about the departure or the flight itself, you can ask them using the form below:

Private jet flights from Ponta Delgada

Few guests leave the way they arrived. From the airport we price island hops to the rest of the archipelago, longer legs to the mainland, to Madeira and the Canaries, and the crossings to North America for which the Azores are a natural pause. Typical one-way prices:

Prices depending on the type of business jet

We can clearly show the high dependence of the cost of the flight, on the type of aircraft - we have collected approximate data, at the price of 1 flight hour, for various types of business jets:

The cost per hour indicated in the table is preliminary and does not constitute an offer or a commercial offer. Exact prices are available from the managers of the company.

Online Calculator

If you want to make an urgent calculation of the cost of a private plane flight, use our online calculator. Just fill in all the fields of the form with a note that you are interested in a specific model of the aircraft and get the final price. NB! - the figures are sent to you by email or messenger, please carefully fill in the contact details to get the calculation.

All our calculations are as transparent as possible for you. After receiving the request, we will prepare a beautiful offer - where the costs and the final price will be clearly described. The exact price is agreed in advance and is written in the contract, so you can be sure of the final cost.

Private jets are ready to take off

Our database contains over 6,500 business jets (about 3,500 in Europe and 3,000 in the rest of the world) of different configurations and production years. The list of models is constantly updated. Unfortunately, we can't post a full list of available jets on our website due to confidentiality issues. Please contact the managers of the company for more accurate information. We will help you choose a suitable model taking into account your wishes. These are the typical choices for Ponta Delgada:

This is a small part of what is available. Ponta Delgada is a long way from the big European fleets, so a quote may name a London field, Lisbon or Porto as the starting point of the aircraft, and the price carries the positioning. That is normal for an island in mid-ocean, and it is one more reason to ask early.

How to book a private jet?

You can book a private jet flight to Ponta Delgada in 6 easy steps:

1. Flight request - indicating the route and your preferences for the model of business jet and other points.
2. Coordination of flight details - our consultant will contact you to offer the possible flight options and answer all your questions.
3. Commercial offer - we will send you a final offer on a specific model taking into account all your wishes.
4. Signing of the contract.
5. Payment for the flight and booking a business jet.
6. Departure at the agreed time and date. Assistance during the whole flight.

In addition to renting the private jets and arranging the flights, we provide concierge services, premium transfer, security, exclusive catering, etc. We have learned to solve problems of any complexity, offering the service of the European level. Our experts will be happy to answer your questions and help you arrange your flight.

Business aviation airports in the Azores

One airport carries almost every trip to the island of São Miguel, and two more matter for a crossing or a diversion. Which of them you plan around depends on where the aircraft is going next.

Four points to settle before a Ponta Delgada landing:

Runway 12/30: what the AIP says

The airport sits on the south coast, west of the old town, and the ground rises sharply to the north-west of the field. The Portuguese AIP gives the figures that matter to a crew, and a few of them are worth knowing as a passenger too.

Runway 12 has no instrument landing system, so on a low-cloud day the choice of runway is made with the wind and the approach minima in hand. The AIP also describes eight flashing lights that mark the coastal obstacle on the runway 12 approach, and warns of turbulence over the high ground near the VOR/DME, which air traffic control asks traffic to overfly above flight level 60 when it can. Fire cover is category 7, raised to 8 or 9 with 24 hours' notice to the airport director, and aircraft above 80 tonnes have to turn on the runway turn pads instead of backtracking, which matters to an airliner-based VIP aircraft and not to a business jet.

Handlers, customs and the stand

Handling is mandatory at Ponta Delgada, and the business-aviation agent to know is ExecuJet, whose FBO opens at 06:15 and closes at 23:59 local time. Its listed services cover crew and passenger assistance, liaison with customs and immigration, slot coordination, landing permissions, refuelling, catering, cleaning, hotel and car bookings, and technical and fuel stops. Maintenance at the airport is in the hands of SATA Air Açores Maintenance, which also arranges oxygen servicing, and the AIP lists no other repair facility for visiting aircraft.

The paperwork is the usual Portuguese set. ExecuJet states that all operators, EU or not, complete the transport and summary declarations on the Portuguese customs platform before arrival, and that both commercial and private operators register on the civil aviation authority's electronic carbon tax form to settle a tax charged on each departing passenger. Commercial operators on non-EU routes also need permission from that authority, requested three working days ahead. A British operator is a non-EU operator, which is why we ask for the crew list and the passenger identity documents at the time of booking, not on the day.

The stand is the least predictable item in the chain. The airport is slot coordinated, the AIP offers no hangar and no de-icing to visiting aircraft, and the aprons are shared with the regional airline. We request the stand together with the slot, and where the aircraft is to wait for days we say plainly whether it stays or flies away and returns.

Border, passport and the tax status of the Azores

The Azores are part of Portugal and of the European Union, and for passports they are inside Schengen: the border is at Ponta Delgada airport, not at some earlier point on the route. British passport holders need no visa for up to 90 days in any 180, with a passport issued less than ten years before arrival and valid for at least three months after the planned departure from the Schengen area. A first-time visitor may be asked to register a photograph and fingerprints at the entry-exit system, which is free.

The special status of the islands lies in the tax rules, not at the border desk. The Azores are an autonomous region with their own VAT rates, below the mainland's, but unlike the Canary Islands they sit inside the European Union VAT area, which the European Commission's territorial table confirms. For a charter this means customs formalities of the ordinary Portuguese kind and no special regime to learn. For the flight home, the General Aviation Report is filed not earlier than 48 hours and not later than 2 hours before departure, and visitors who need no visa but are not British or Irish citizens need an Electronic Travel Authorisation for Britain.

From the apron to the old town

Ponta Delgada has about 67,000 inhabitants in the municipality and is the executive capital of the autonomous region, on the south coast of an island of about 140,000 people and 760 square kilometres. The temperature stays between 14 and 23 degrees Celsius through the year, kept in a narrow band by the Gulf Stream, and about a metre of rain falls on the city in an ordinary year. The airport has buses, taxis and car hire at the terminal, and the drive to the centre is a matter of minutes.

The old town is small enough to walk. The city gates, the Portas da Cidade, stand beside the harbour, and the mother church of São Sebastião, the Fort of São Brás, the Theatre Micalense and the Convent of Nossa Senhora da Esperança, home of the Santo Cristo sanctuary, are within a short walk of each other. The gardens of António Borges and José do Canto are the places to spend an hour between a late lunch and an early dinner.

Where to stay

ExecuJet lists five hotels for crews and clients with their distance from its terminal: the 4-star Hotel Ponta Delgada at 4 km, the 5-star Grand Hotel Açores Atlântico at 6 km, the 4-star Hotel VIP Executive at 7 km, the 5-star Octant Ponta Delgada at 8 km and the 5-star Pedras do Mar Resort & Spa at 16 km. The first four lie within 8 km of the terminal, and the last is a resort 16 km out.

Some guests do not sleep in the city at all. The valley of Furnas, 40 minutes to the east, has the Terra Nostra Garden Hotel, whose guests have free access to the garden and whose thermal bath stays open until 22:00, and a stay of two nights there and one in town fits the lakes, the springs and the harbour into a long weekend. We book the car with the hotel, so that the driver knows the way to the right gate.

Sete Cidades and the western rim

Everybody asks for Sete Cidades, and rightly. The caldera in the west of the island holds two lakes side by side, Lagoa Azul to the north, which reflects blue under a clear sky, and Lagoa Verde to the south, which keeps its green tint whatever the weather. From the platform at Vista do Rei, at around 550 m, the whole crater opens below, with the village and its church on the bridge between the lakes. The lakes cover about 440 hectares together and the walls rise to over 800 m in places.

The road from the viewpoint is lined with hydrangeas that flower from June to August, and about 15 minutes north of the village the black sand beach of Mosteiros faces a line of volcanic islets and is the place on the island to watch the sun go down. Cloud can close the crater in minutes, so the best plan is to go early and keep the afternoon free. There is no convenient bus, which is the reason to arrange a car with a driver and not to rely on a taxi rank.

Furnas: hot water and the cozido

Furnas lies in a caldera in the east of the island, about 40 minutes from the city, and the ground there is alive. Boiling water and mud gush out of holes in the earth, and the valley has made the heat useful. The pool in the Terra Nostra garden holds iron-rich water at a steady 40 degrees and stains swimwear, so dark costumes are the rule; the garden is open to the public daily from 10:00 to 18:00 and tickets for summer are best bought ahead. The Poça da Dona Beija has six pools between 25 and 39 degrees and opens from 07:00 to 23:00. Caldeira Velha is booked a day ahead through the regional parks platform. On the south coast, Ponta da Ferraria is an ocean hot spring that is free to enter and changes with the tide, too hot at low water and cooler as the Atlantic comes in.

The cozido das Furnas is the dish of the valley. Cooks carry the pots to the lakeshore at about five in the morning, bury them in the ground without adding water and leave the heat of the earth to cook pork, chicken, taro, carrots, cabbage and blood sausage in their own steam for between five and eight hours, depending on the kitchen. It is a lunch to book in advance and a reason to arrive in the valley early.

Lagoa do Fogo and the tea coast

Lagoa do Fogo sits in the middle of the island inside a nature reserve that has been protected since the 1970s. The lake margins are about 575 m above the sea and the rim reaches Pico da Barrosa at about 949 m. Between 1 June and 30 September private cars cannot reach the viewpoint between 09:00 and 19:00, and visitors park at Caldeira Velha or Casa da Água and take the shuttle; outside those months the road is open. The lake is cold, about 17 to 19 degrees even in summer, and cloud arrives quickly, so early morning gives the clearest view. The way there is 35 minutes along the south coast, or 45 minutes through Ribeira Grande on the north.

Gorreana is on the north coast, about 30 km from the city, and is the oldest tea factory still working in Europe, founded in the nineteenth century and run by the fifth generation of the same family. Entry, parking and the tasting in the café are free, it opens from 08:00 on weekdays and 09:00 at weekends and closes at 18:00, and a 3.4 km loop through the bushes takes about an hour. It makes black teas, among them Orange Pekoe and Pekoe, and green teas. Porto Formoso, about ten minutes further west, is a smaller producer. A car and driver for Furnas in the morning and the tea coast after lunch is the standard day.

Whale watching and the islet

Sperm whales live in Azorean waters all year, which makes sightings reliable in every month. Blue and fin whales pass between March and June and peak in April and May, and common and bottlenose dolphins stay all year, with Atlantic spotted dolphins more frequent in summer. Tours leave from the Ponta Delgada marina and from Vila Franca do Campo, last three to four hours and must be run by licensed operators who keep to approach distances and limit the boats around an animal. For a party that wants the boat to itself, a private trip is the thing to ask for.

Off Vila Franca do Campo stands a small volcanic islet of about 5 to 6 hectares, whose crater is open to the sea and forms a natural lagoon about 150 m across. Landings are capped at 400 a day, boats run from the town in summer, and the interior is closed to visitors from mid-April to mid-June to protect breeding wildlife, so the visit has to be planned with the local operators and not left to the morning.

Terceira, Pico, Faial and Santa Maria

The other islands are the other half of an Azores trip, and most of them are an hour or less away. Santa Maria, about 30 minutes by the airline, is the sunny and dry island, with white sand at Praia Formosa and houses of black volcanic stone painted white. Terceira, 40 minutes away, has the old town of Angra do Heroísmo, a World Heritage site and the oldest city in the archipelago, the tuff cone of Monte Brasil above the harbour, and bullfighting on a rope in the village streets from spring to late September.

Pico and Faial, 55 minutes each, face one another across a channel that the ferry crosses in about 30 minutes. Mount Pico rises to 2,351 m, the highest mountain in Portugal, and the vineyards at its foot are a World Heritage site; sperm whale hunting ended there, and the first whale watching operator was based at Lajes do Pico. Horta, on Faial, has been a waypoint for the Atlantic since the harbour was built, and the Capelinhos volcano, whose eruption joined a new islet to the island, left the western tip a landscape of ash. By sea the picture is simple: the summer ferry lines we found link the central islands, and the timetables we checked list no regular passenger crossing from São Miguel, so for a hop from Ponta Delgada the aircraft is the practical choice and a boat is a trip of its own.

Flying to the Azores with a dog or a cat

The Azores are an EU region, so the paperwork is the European Union's, and the usual failure is a date on the certificate, not the flight. The animal travels in the cabin with you and on a sector of about three and a half hours most dogs simply sleep.

What Portugal asks for when a pet arrives from Britain:

• An ISO microchip, fitted before the rabies vaccination or at the same time;
• A rabies vaccination given when the animal was at least 12 weeks old, with 21 days elapsed before it travels;
• An Animal Health Certificate for each trip, issued by an Official Veterinarian and valid for ten days for entry to the EU, and valid for the return as stated on the certificate. A British pet passport cannot be used to enter the EU;
• No more than five animals per traveller, entering through a travellers' point of entry, which Ponta Delgada airport is on the Azores list. The regional agriculture authority asks for written notice to that point at least 48 hours before departure, and the AIP lists a veterinary service for live animals that needs eight hours' notice. We send both;
• For dogs, a tapeworm treatment from a vet between 24 and 120 hours before arrival back in Britain, recorded on the paperwork. Cats are exempt.

Requirements for cats, ferrets, birds and anything less usual are collected on our flying with pets guide. For the entry point and the paperwork on the way home we confirm both in writing before the flight, and our managers check the position for your dates before a booking is taken.

The Azores calendar: processions, whales and hydrangeas

No single festival fills the island, but a handful of dates matter for a charter. Pick the week before you pick the aircraft.

Ways to bring the Ponta Delgada price down

• Fly from the west. On the same Phenom 300E the sector from Cardiff is priced about £1,300 below the one from Biggin Hill, and Southampton and Bristol sit between them;
• Go out of season when the point is the hot springs and the whales. Sperm whales live off the island all year and Furnas is at its best on a cool day, so winter and early spring are quieter, with rooms and cars easier to find, at the price of the weather;
• Put the legs in one booking. London to Ponta Delgada, the hop to a second island and the flight home arranged as one itinerary keep the aircraft and crew with you and cost less than three quotes.

Types of flights

Ponta Delgada serves several kinds of traveller at once, because the airport is a gateway, a stopover and a hub at the same time.

• Holiday and family weeks, with a hotel in the city or in Furnas and often a dog on board;
• Hot-spring, hiking and whale watching trips, from long weekends to a fortnight;
• Island-hopping itineraries that add Terceira, Pico, Faial or Santa Maria by turboprop;
• Technical and fuel stops on a crossing of the Atlantic, which ExecuJet lists among its services at Ponta Delgada;
• Combined trips that go on to Madeira, the Canaries or Lisbon, or return to London by another route.

The Atlantic stop deserves a careful look. For a flight from London to the American north-east the northern track through Gander is the shorter one: from Farnborough to Bedford the figures come to about 2,942 nautical miles via Gander and about 3,554 via Ponta Delgada. The Azores make sense when the destination is further south, when the aircraft is arriving from the south or from the Caribbean, or when the weather at the Newfoundland end is poor. Westbound legs of 2,171 nautical miles to Bedford or 2,315 to Teterboro are beyond a light jet's published range of 2,010 nautical miles, so these are jobs for a super-midsize or a large aircraft, planned with the wind in mind.

Empty Legs

An empty leg is a repositioning flight with nobody aboard, offered at a fraction of the usual price. The Azores generate them because the island is a long way from where aircraft are based, and most guests come for a week.

With a corridor this thin a client who can name a few days has a far better chance than one who needs a particular evening. The operator owns the date and the hour, and a leg can vanish if the booking behind it moves. Whatever is free is listed on our empty legs page, and we flag a match for the Azores the day an operator releases it.

Helicopter charter

A helicopter in the Azores is a tool for the edges of a trip. The AIP lists no helicopter landing area at Ponta Delgada airport, so the question is always where the machine lands, and we settle that with the owner of the site and the authority before a quote is written.

The machines that suit this ground are the Airbus H125 for scenic work, the wider H130 for villa and hotel transfers, and the H135 and the Bell 429 where a twin engine is wanted. We book them alongside the jet so that both crews work to one timetable.

Flight payment options

The main goal of our company is to provide the highest level of comfort to our customers. Therefore, we're always ready to meet you halfway. Our consultants will offer you a wide variety of flights to meet your needs and budget. Most customers prefer a non-cash method (a transfer to an EU bank account), which guarantees a high level of confidentiality and security of payment. All payment details are provided in advance, so you'll have enough time to make the necessary checks. For years of working in business aviation, our company has gained an impeccable reputation. We practice transparency and are always ready to present all necessary documents.

Private Jets UK works with both physical and legal entities. We guarantee the confidentiality and security of payments. You can pay for the flights from Ponta Delgada in any convenient way:

• cashless (by transfer to our account);
• by cash;
• by card;
• by cryptocurrency.

Our company works with European and British banks, which allows you to choose the most convenient payment method. In addition, we conclude formal agreements and provide our clients with all necessary documents and invoices, which guarantees the safe payment and delivery of services. If you have any financial questions, feel free to contact our private aviation consultants.

If you need to book an urgent flight, please keep in mind that the bank transfer can take a few days. In such situations, we may need to involve our partner companies so that you can pay for your flight in cash. If you have any questions, you can contact your personal consultant 24/7.

Flights from the UK to Ponta Delgada

Biggin Hill, Farnborough, London City and Luton send most of the traffic on this corridor, with Southampton, Bristol and Cardiff the shortest of the sectors and Scotland the longest; the price table higher up covers thirteen of those pairings. Our clients have access to all airports of the UK and Europe. Due to the unique partnership conditions, we can offer our clients the best prices for business aviation services. Our experts will consult you on the availability of private jets in a particular city and help you choose the best option.

List of TOP 25 business aviation airports:

 

Airport	Country	ICAO	IATA
London Heathrow Airport	England	EGLL	LHR
Birmingham Airport	England	EGBB	BHX
London Gatwick	England	EGKK	LGW
London City Airport	England	EGLC	LCY
London Luton	England	EGGW	LTN
Edinburgh Airport	Scotland	EGPH	EDI
Leeds Airport	England	EGNM	LBA
Manchester Airport	England	EGCC	MAN
London Stansted	England	EGSS	STN
Liverpool John Lennon Airport	England	EGGP	LPL
Newcastle Airport	England	EGNT	NCL
Bristol Airport	England	EGGD	BRS
Glasgow Airport	Scotland	EGPF	GLA
East Midlands Airport	England	EGNX	EMA
Southampton Airport	England	EGHI	SOU
Jersey Airport	Channel Islands	EGJJ	JER
Cardiff International Airport	Wales	EGFF	CWL
Inverness Airport	Scotland	EGPE	INV
Bournemouth Airport	England	EGHH	BOH
London Farnborough Airport	England	EGLF	FAB
Oxford Airport	England	EGTK	OXF
London Biggin Hill	England	EGKB	BQH
Belfast Airport	Northern Ireland	EGAA	BFS
Gibraltar Airport	Gibraltar	LXGB	GIB
Aberdeen Airport	Scotland	EGPD	ABZ

Ponta Delgada charters from the booking notes: six typical trips

What the corridor looks like once a quote turns into a flight. Six typical jobs of the kind that come through our booking notes, described in outline, with the particulars changed.

Frequently asked questions about flying to Ponta Delgada