PREMIER AVIATION (UK) LIMITED

What PREMIER AVIATION (UK) LIMITED does

Premier Aviation (UK) Limited, founded in 1994 by Adrian Whitmarsh and headquartered in West Grinstead, West Sussex, operates as a private aircraft charter broker rather than an aircraft operator. The company acts as an intermediary between clients seeking private air charter and a global network of aircraft operators, arranging executive jets, airliners, turboprops, helicopters, and freighters across every continent. Premier Aviation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hunt & Palmer Plc and operates with a small core team of approximately seven named brokers supported by additional staff, providing 24/7 personalised service from initial quote through to in-flight monitoring.

The firm's commercial focus is heavily concentrated in the music and entertainment industry, which accounts for over 95% of its business. Premier Aviation has facilitated more than 125 tours across its first 23 years of operation, including five of the top ten biggest tours in history and the top three grossing tours of 2012; clients have included tour managers for Bruce Springsteen, Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, KISS, Lorde, Fleetwood Mac, Muse, and Frank Turner, with several relationships spanning 15-30 years. During peak summer touring season the firm coordinates 20+ tour charters and up to 10-12 daily flights. Supporting products include an Empty Leg discounted-fare offering, a carbon offsetting add-on in partnership with C-Level, and informational resources (pricing guides, aircraft comparison charts, global airport directories).

Revenue is generated on a transactional brokerage commission model (no fixed pricing tiers) with quote-based billing driven by aircraft type, distance, passenger count, and itinerary. Distribution is fully direct — UK and US toll-free phone lines, email, and a website quote tool — supplemented by earned media (IQ Magazine editorial feature, 2023), industry sponsorships (Live UK Awards Tour Manager of the Year in 2016 and 2017), and the 2022 'Charter Operators' Broker of the Year' award from The Air Charter Association. The company holds Investors In People accreditation and operates with no proprietary technology platform or AI capabilities disclosed.

Name

PREMIER AVIATION (UK) LIMITED

Legal name

Premier Aviation (UK) Ltd

Website

https://premieraviation.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Premier Aviation (UK) Limited is a private aircraft charter broker founded in 1994, serving music and entertainment touring clients (95%+ of business), corporate executives, sports teams, and film productions globally. A subsidiary of Hunt & Palmer Plc, it arranges jets, airliners, helicopters, and freighters worldwide with 24/7 personal service.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Private Aircraft Charter Brokerage

NAICS

Nonscheduled Chartered Passenger Air Transportation (481211), Nonscheduled Air Transportation (4812)

SIC

Air Transportation, Nonscheduled (4522)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Aviation Brokerages & Trip Marketplace Platforms (THABAFAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Business Jet Charter (On-Demand) (THABAFAA), Charter Brokerage & Charter Management (Passenger) (THABADAL), Private Jet Charter (Midsize/Super-Midsize/Heavy Jet) (TLAFABAB)

Keywords

• Private jet charter
• Aircraft charter brokerage
• Music tour charter
• Executive air charter
• Empty leg flights

Headquarters

HQ city

Crawley

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Aircraft Charter Brokerage: Acting as a broker between clients seeking private aircraft charter and aircraft operators worldwide. The company arranges flights and charges for the service, drawing revenue from the transaction. They provide personalized service from quoting through operational setup to flight monitoring.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Premier Aviation is a private aircraft charter broker that arranges flights by matching client requirements with aircraft operators worldwide. The company provides 24/7 personalised service from initial quote through operational setup to flight monitoring, accessing executive jets, airliners, props, helicopters, and freighters on every continent, with the music and entertainment touring sector accounting for over 95% of business.

Product overview

Premier Aviation (UK) Limited operates as a private aircraft charter broker, offering a unified charter service covering executive jets, airliners, props, helicopters, and freighters across all continents. The company's core product is its private jet hire and aircraft charter service, which spans several specialist verticals: Music Tours & Entertainment Industry Charter (its primary focus, accounting for over 95% of business), Business & Executive Air Charter, Leisure Air Charter, Sports Events Air Charter, and Movies/Film/TV Location Aviation. The company also offers an add-on Carbon Offsetting programme in partnership with C-Level, and an Empty Leg Flights product for discounted one-way sectors. Supporting the core charter services are informational resources including a Private Jet Cost guide, an Aircraft Guide, an Aircraft Cabin Comparison Chart, and a Global Airport Maps directory covering airports across Africa, Asia/Middle East, Europe, North America, South America, and the Caribbean. Premier Aviation was established in 1994 and is part of the Hunt & Palmer Group.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Private Jet Hire & Aircraft Charter Core brokerage service providing private aircraft charter for individuals, touring artists, and corporate groups, sourcing executive jets, airliners, props, helicopters, and freighters worldwide on a global basis.
• Music Tours & Entertainment Industry Charter Specialised air charter service for touring musicians, bands, orchestras, and entertainment industry clients, supporting global music tours with flexible aircraft ranging from executive jets to full airliners. Accounts for over 95% of Premier Aviation's business.
• Business & Executive Air Charter Private aircraft charter service for business travellers and corporate executives requiring discreet, personalised air travel with flexible scheduling.
• Leisure Air Charter Private jet charter service for individuals and groups travelling for holidays and leisure purposes.
• Sports Events Air Charter Charter aircraft for sporting events, serving both sports teams and fans travelling to tournaments and events.
• Movies, Film & TV Location Aviation Aviation services for actors, film crews, and production equipment, supporting location shoots for the movies, film, video, and television industry.
• Empty Leg Flights Reduced-cost one-way charter flights on aircraft that would otherwise fly empty to reposition, providing discounted pricing on available routes.
• Carbon Offsetting for Air Charter Optional carbon offset programme offered to clients to mitigate the environmental impact of air charter flights, delivered in partnership with C-Level, originators of the terms 'Carbon Footprint' and 'Carbon Balanced'.

Quantifiable outcome

• More than 20 tour charters per summer season
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• Hunt & Palmer PlccoreOthersHunt & Palmer Plc is the parent company and controller of Premier Aviation. Premier Aviation (UK) Ltd is part of the Hunt & Palmer Group of companies. The privacy notice is issued by Hunt & Palmer Plc on behalf of the Group. Jeremy Palmer is Chairman of Hunt & Palmer PLC. Premier Aviation won the Charter Operators' Broker of the Year 2022 award as Hunt & Palmer & Premier Aviation.
• C-LevelsupportingStrategic or Co-development PartnerCarbon offsetting partnership with C-Level, who originated the terms 'Carbon Footprint' and 'Carbon Balanced'. Premier Aviation offers clients the option to carbon offset air charter flights through this partnership, providing a verifiable solution for environmental impact mitigation.
• Aircraft Operators WorldwidecoreOthersPremier Aviation has built strong relationships with leading aircraft operators worldwide, providing access to executive jets, airliners, props, helicopters, and freighters on every continent. These operator partnerships enable the company to source appropriate aircraft based on client criteria and budget.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Air Partner: Air Partner is a long-established UK-headquartered charter broker serving private jet, group charter, and cargo customers worldwide, now owned by Wheels Up. It is a direct peer to Premier given its similar broker model, music and entertainment client base, and global operator network.
• Paramount Business Jets: Paramount Business Jets is an online-enabled charter broker providing worldwide private jet arrangements with quote-based pricing similar to Premier's. It competes in the same broker segment for executive, music touring, and entertainment charter work without owning aircraft.
• PrivateFly: PrivateFly is a digital-first private jet charter broker offering instant online quoting and booking globally. It is comparable to Premier as a non-asset charter intermediary arranging on-demand private jet flights for high-net-worth and corporate clients, with overlapping music and entertainment charter demand.
• Chapman Freeborn: Chapman Freeborn is one of the world's largest independent aircraft charter brokers, headquartered in the UK with a global network. It is directly comparable to Premier Aviation as a non-asset-based broker arranging passenger and cargo charter across all aircraft types, and competes head-to-head in the music/entertainment and VIP charter segment.
• Stratos Jet Charters: Stratos Jet Charters is a US-based on-demand charter broker arranging private jet flights worldwide with a strong focus on entertainment, music touring, and sports clients. Its business model and vertical mix closely mirror Premier Aviation's broker-without-fleet approach to touring and VIP charter.

Broad incumbents

• VistaJet: VistaJet is a global business aviation company operating a large fleet of owned business jets sold via membership and on-demand programs. It is comparable to Premier as a competitor for premium private aviation demand, including music touring, but differs by being an asset-heavy operator rather than a broker.
• Wheels Up: Wheels Up is a US-headquartered private aviation company combining membership-based and on-demand charter, and owns Air Partner. It competes with Premier across private jet demand, including entertainment clients, but at much larger scale and with owned fleet alongside charter brokerage.
• NetJets: NetJets (a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary) operates the world's largest fractional private jet ownership and lease program. It overlaps with Premier's high-net-worth and corporate client base but competes via owned-asset programs rather than brokerage, putting it in the broader incumbent category.

Others

• Avinode Group: Avinode Group provides the leading B2B technology platform and marketplace used by charter brokers and operators worldwide to source, price, and manage aircraft. It is comparable to Premier as a participant in the charter brokerage ecosystem, but functions as an enabling technology supplier rather than a competing broker.
• Hunt & Palmer Group: Hunt & Palmer Plc is the parent group of Premier Aviation (UK) Ltd and a wider charter brokerage operation. It is comparable as the corporate parent and shared brand behind Premier's TACA Broker of the Year win, and is an ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PremierAviation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about PREMIER AVIATION (UK) LIMITED