The Challenges of Booking a Private Jet for a Roadshow

Arranging a one-way private jet flight is relatively simple. Coordinating a multi-sector roadshow, however, introduces an extra layer of complexity for  brokers, and operators. Each leg of the journey must align with regulatory requirements, crew scheduling, and operational contingencies.

In this article, we’ll cover:

• Crew duty limits – how flight time restrictions affect roadshow scheduling and what to plan for.
• Landing rights – why permits are required, and how they can create challenges at certain destinations.
• Potential disruptions – how to prepare for last-minute changes, including technical issues and slot delays.
  

By the end, you’ll understand the core considerations that go into managing a roadshow flight program and how platforms like Tribe simplify communication and increases collaboration between operators and brokers to reduce risk and save time.

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Roadshow Example – Supporting Multi-Sector Missions

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Roadshows are a recurring demand in business aviation, particularly across financial across the world. A typical itinerary might include multiple stops across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and India, as companies seek capital or expand their client base.

For brokers, the challenge lies in coordinating multi-leg requests where timing is critical and meetings leave little margin for delays. Operators must manage crew duty limits, obtain landing rights across several jurisdictions, and ensure aircraft availability with built-in contingencies.

A roadshow request is rarely just one flight, it is a sequence of tightly scheduled movements where any disruption can impact the entire program. Accurate quoting, transparent communication, and operational foresight are essential.

Tribe enables brokers to submit structured multi-sector requests in one thread and allows operators to respond with consolidated quotes, slot considerations, and crew planning details. By centralizing this workflow, brokers can provide clients with confidence in execution, while operators reduce the risk of miscommunication across multiple sectors.

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As you plan the roadshow, here are key factors to consider:

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Crew Duty Limitations – How flight crew working hours impact scheduling.

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Landing Permissions & Slots – Understanding airport approvals and availability.

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Crew Visas – Ensuring proper documentation for seamless entry.

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Contingency Planning – Preparing for unexpected delays or technical issues.

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Segmenting the Trip and Crew Duty

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Most people, whether administrative staff or travel agents end to segment a roadshow based on meeting locations. While this approach works for scheduling meetings, it doesn’t account for crew duty limitations.

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To effectively plan a private jet itinerary, the trip should be segmented by days rather than just destinations. In the example above, the journey is divided into four days: December 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th.

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This method is particularly valuable for brokers as it helps determine the crew’s available operating hours each day, ensuring a smooth and compliant flight schedule.

In this example, the crew operates three sectors in a single day.

The flight begins at 7:00 AM local time from Al Maktoum International (OMDW), making stops in Riyadh and Jeddah before concluding in Doha at night.

At first glance, the schedule seems manageable - three sectors, starting at 7:00 AM and finishing at 8:00 PM. It should be doable, right? However, a closer examination of crew duty limitations tells a different story.

Below is an indicative breakdown of the crew duty time for this schedule:

As you can see, crew duty limits have been exceeded, meaning the flight may not be legally or operationally feasible. This highlights why careful planning and awareness of crew duty regulations are essential when arranging a multi-sector roadshow.

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With three sectors, duty time is reduced by 1 hour 30 minutes, bringing the total allowable duty time to 11 hours 30 minutes.

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Pre- & Post-Flight Duty – Crew duty starts 45 minutes to an hour before departure and ends 30–45 minutes after arrival.

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• Under EASA regulations, duty can be extended if ground time exceeds three hours by implementing a “split duty” period.

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• In this scenario, the crew could split duty in Riyadh due to extended ground time.

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Factors Affecting Crew Duty Time

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Crew Acclimatization – Since the crew operates within the same time zones (+/- 1 hour), the impact on duty time is minimal. However, crossing multiple time zones ]such as flying from Dubai to New York directly reduces the allowable duty hours.

‍Window of Circadian Low (WOCL) – If duty starts or ends during typical sleeping hours (2:00 AM – 6:00 AM local time), it affects crew duty time. In this case, the flight starts at 7:00 AM, so WOCL does not apply.

Number of Sectors – Maximum crew duty time is 13 hours for two sectors. For each additional sector, duty time is reduced by 30 minutes.

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Solving Crew Duty Limitations

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The only solutions are to:

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Reduce ground time – Cutting 45 minutes in Riyadh could help.

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Limit the number of sectors – Removing one sector would resolve the issue.

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Managing Flight Delays

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If meetings run late or unexpected delays occur, crew and operators must follow aviation authority regulations. Fatigue is a major safety concern, and no responsible crew will accept a mission that violates duty time limits.

Crew discretion plays a crucial role in managing last-minute changes on the day of the flight.

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How Tribe Helps

Tribe’s platform automatically factors crew duty limitations into the search and quoting process. If a proposed multi-sector schedule exceeds regulatory limits, the system flags it immediately. This allows operators to adjust their responses and brokers to reset client expectations before confirmation.

By addressing these issues upfront, Tribe reduces last-minute disruptions, improves quoting accuracy, and helps both brokers and operators deliver smoother execution for complex roadshow programs.

Landing Permissions and Slots

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Landing permissions are required whenever a foreign-registered aircraft intends to land in a country. If the aircraft is commercially registered , meaning it is authorized to carry passengers for compensation, most countries mandate a landing permit.

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This requirement is based on the Freedoms of the Air, a set of traffic rights established by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). These rights, defined through bilateral agreements between nations, determine an aircraft’s privileges for landing, departing, and transporting passengers across borders.

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General Landing Permit Requirements:

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Most countries require operators to obtain landing and overflight permits from their Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) before a flight can operate.

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Exception – The EU Open Skies Policy:

The European Union follows an Open Skies Policy, eliminating the need for prior approval within the EU. However, this exception only applies to aircraft registered in the EU.

Landing Permissions: UAE to Qatar

On a roadshow sector from the UAE to Qatar, regulatory compliance begins well before departure. The operator must provide passenger passport details to UAE authorities for Advance Passenger Information (API) processing. At the same time, landing permissions for Doha must be requested and secured before the crew even boards the aircraft.

For brokers, this means every passenger manifest change needs to be captured and relayed quickly to avoid delays. For operators, it adds administrative workload and coordination across multiple authorities.

With Tribe, these requirements are integrated into the workflow: passenger information can be submitted securely, and updates are flagged in real time so both sides know when landing permits and API submissions are cleared. This minimizes back-and-forth emails and ensures compliance checks are handled early in the process.

Qatar’s Landing Permit Process:

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Previously, Qatar required a sponsor letter to issue landing permits. However, this is no longer necessary. Instead, the operator—either directly or through an agent—must submit the required documentation, including passengers’ passport copies, to obtain approval.

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Processing Time:

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Qatar landing permits typically take 24 hours to process and are relatively straightforward if all documentation is in place.

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India: The Most Challenging Destination for Landing Permits

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Among the locations in our current schedule, India presents the most challenges for obtaining landing permits. The process requires a minimum of 72 hours during the working week, making advance planning crucial.

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Key Requirements:

• Passengers’ passport copies

• Letter stating the purpose of the visit (in some cases)

• Permit agent involvement – The Indian Directorate General of Civil

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Aviation (DGCA) mandates that operators work with an authorized permit agent to secure approvals.

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Important Consideration:

Once the permit application is submitted, adding passengers to the list is extremely difficult. It’s essential to finalize the passenger manifest before applying to avoid disruptions.

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Careful coordination and early submission are key to ensuring a smooth approval process.

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‍Understanding Cabotage in Private Jet Operations

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Cabotage refers to the right to operate a domestic flight using a foreign-registered aircraft. In our case, since we are operating a foreign aircraft within Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and India, cabotage does not apply as long as we are entering and leaving each country with the same group of passengers.

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However, if operator were to carry additional passengers within Saudi Arabia or India, the flight would be classified as cabotage, requiring special permission.

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Cabotage Flights Are Rarely Allowed, But Exceptions Exist:

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Lack of Local Capacity – If the country does not have the necessary aircraft to operate the route.

Diplomatic Missions – When the flight request is for official diplomatic purposes.

Medical Emergencies – If the flight is required for urgent medical transport.

Understanding cabotage restrictions is critical when planning multi-sector roadshows to ensure compliance with local aviation regulations.

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Understanding Slots vs. Landing Permits

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‍Slots and landing permits are not the same. While landing permits are issued by Civil Aviation Authorities (CAA), slots are typically assigned by airports and/or Air Traffic Control (ATC).

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When Are Slots Required?

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At highly congested airports like London Heathrow, Nice, or Dubai International, a slot application may be necessary to secure an arrival or departure time. This can be challenging when organizing a roadshow with a tight schedule. A mismatch between landing and departure slots can cause major disruptions, leading to delays or rescheduling issues.

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How Tribe Helps

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Tribe streamlines this process by embedding chat function into workflows into the operator–broker communication chain. Operators can flag slot restrictions directly within their quotes, while brokers see real-time updates before client confirmation.

By surfacing potential scheduling conflicts early, Tribe reduces the risk of last-minute disruptions and ensures operators and brokers have a shared view of critical requirements. This transforms what is often a fragmented, email-heavy process into a centralized, transparent workflow.

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Crew Visas: What You Need to Know

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It may come as a surprise, but not all countries allow flight crew to enter without a visa.

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GenDec (General Declaration) vs. Crew Visas

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Most countries operate on a GenDec system, allowing crew members to receive a visa on arrival due to the nature of their job. However, some countries, like China, require a specific crew visa, meaning operators must arrange visas in advance before confirming the flight.

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Crew Visa Rules in Saudi Arabia & India

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• Saudi Arabia & India generally follow the GenDec system, meaning visas on arrival are permitted for crew.

• Important Note: Crew members cannot be swapped within the country to extend crew duty. This means flight planning must account for duty time limits without relying on crew changes.

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Proper visa arrangements are crucial when organizing a multi-sector roadshow to avoid last-minute complications.

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Contingency Planning: Preparing for the Unexpected

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Just like any machine, airplanes can experience technical issues before or after a flight. In aviation, this is known as AOG (Aircraft on Ground). An AOG situation is a nightmare for everyone involved—from brokers and operators to the assistant that is organizing the flight.

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For operators, this means having immediate access to backup aircraft or partner fleets. For brokers, it requires transparent communication with clients and the ability to source alternatives quickly. Both sides must work in sync to minimize downtime and keep the roadshow on track.

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Planning for Contingencies

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Unfortunately, securing a replacement aircraft for an AOG can be both costly and time-consuming. At a minimum, it usually takes 4 to 5 hours to arrange another aircraft, as this involves:

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- Finding a replacement aircraft.

- Processing paperwork

- Securing crew

- Transferring necessary permits

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Alternative Solutions

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While not ideal, the best course of action in such cases may be to use a commercial flight for the first leg of the journey and then continue the rest of the roadshow via private jet.

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Having a contingency plan in place ensures minimal disruptions and helps manage expectations in case of unforeseen technical issues.

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Conclusion

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Coordinating private jet roadshows is one of the most complex tasks in business aviation. Every detail , from crew duty limits and cabotage rules to slots, landing permits, and visa requirements, must be managed with precision. Even with meticulous planning, contingencies such as AOG events or scheduling conflicts can disrupt multi-sector itineraries if backup plans aren’t in place.

For operators, the challenge lies in delivering reliable schedules across multiple jurisdictions. For brokers, it’s about consolidating quotes, aligning expectations, and keeping clients informed when plans shift. Success depends on both sides working from the same set of data and anticipating risks in advance.

Tribe provides the workflow layer that makes this possible. By centralizing requests, streamlining operator responses, and surfacing potential compliance or scheduling issues early, we help reduce friction across the broker–operator relationship. The result is faster quoting, fewer last-minute surprises, and greater confidence when executing complex roadshow programs.

With Tribe, brokers and operators can focus on serving clients, knowing the operational backbone is built for efficiency and resilience.