I flew home for the holidays on a little-known airline with zero wait time that feels like a chartered jet, and I'm never flying 'normally' again
With no ticket and no boarding pass for my flight to Burbank on the chartered semi-private airline JetSuiteX, I wondered if I'd made a huge mistake.
But as I pulled my luggage out of the car, I spotted another sign with the name JetSuiteX emblazoned across it and what looked like a few other customers — mostly people with small dogs — scattered around the tiny entrance.
Walking into the terminal located a few minutes' drive from the Oakland International Airport, a JetSuiteX rug helped assure me that I was in the right place.
As someone who deals with a fair amount of pre-flight anxiety, I hoped my JetSuiteX experience would be different. Some of my normal triggers — or the things that tip me from antsy to on-edge — include large crowds, long wait times, and invasive security checks.
JetSuiteX claimed to have none of these.
There was no wait for my flight. Instead, a cheery customer service agent greeted me and asked simply for an ID. She used that to print my paper boarding pass.
She then swabbed my hands and luggage with cloth designed to check for traces of explosives — part of the standard protocol for TSA agents at major airports. Only there was no TSA, and that was the only security I'd encounter.
According to JetSuiteX's website, these security measures "exceed" TSA requirements.
"Every customer is matched against the TSA watchlist like any other commercial airline," it reads. "Regulators at the TSA, FAA, and DOT have approved all JetSuiteX security measures."
Once I was checked in and ready for my flight, I was invited to wait in JetSuiteX's lounge area. It looked more like a cozy coffee shop than an airport waiting room.
A few people had set themselves up on laptops at numerous stations throughout the area, which was outfitted with plenty of outlets and WiFi.
There were also free snacks and drinks, which got me wondering: How does JetSuiteX manage to charge just $125 for a flight that normally costs $300 while still offering perks like these?
Turns out that JetSuiteX is a charter air carrier that only sells tickets for flights between California and Nevada. It was co-founded in 2011 by Alex Wilcox, one of the founders of JetBlue, and raised $7 million from that airline.
So it's perhaps thanks to investors like JetBlue that JetSuiteX is able to make budget flights feel like a boutique experience. Even the restroom area had a cozy lounge feel.
Still, my flight experience had only just begun.
After hanging around the lounge for about an hour, myself and a couple dozen other passengers were called to board the plane.
At the french glass doors opposite my side of the lounge, a ticketing agent called us to board and checked our boarding passes. The whole process took about a minute.
Before I knew it, I was looking up close and personal at the plane I was about to use to fly from Oakland to Burbank.
Despite being founded in 2011, JetSuiteX didn't start flying until April 2016.
As of this year, the airline sells tickets for flights to six cities, five of which are in California: Burbank (Bob Hope Airport), Concord (Buchanan Field Airport), Mammoth Lakes (Mammoth Yosemite Airport), Oakland (Oakland International Airport), Santa Ana (John Wayne Airport), and Las Vegas, Nevada.
To board my flight, all I did was walk up a small flight of stairs located at the front of the aircraft.
Our plane was a regional airliner called an Embraer ERJ-135, or E-135 for short. The planes hold up to 35 people and are equipped with a small bathroom at the back.
Inside the plane, there was just one flight attendant, along with about 25 other passengers. Outlets at each seat made it convenient to charge my phone as we flew.
During the flight, there were more free drinks — including alcohol — as well as a different selection of snacks, including veggie chips and miniature bags of coconut flakes.
As we cruised above the Bay Area, I couldn't help but pledge to myself that I'd never fly another airline within California again. There was one minor drawback, however.
On a small plane like the E-135, you can definitely feel the push and pull of the air pressure around you. The plane also felt as if it dipped and swooped a bit more than the average long-haul plane.
Admittedly, I deal with fairly frequent motion sickness. Car rides make me sick. So do swings. So it's worth noting that everyone else on the plane seemed just as relaxed as usual.
About 50 minutes later, we touched down in Burbank, a 20-minute drive from Downtown Los Angeles. The flight attendant handed me a mint. A staff member wheeled out our luggage. And we left through an aircraft carrier.
Before I knew it, my first JetSuiteX flight experience was over. Until next time, JetSuiteX!
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