usmbguest5318
Gold Member
??? The fact that he wanted to dispense with the tax breaks corporate jet owners doesn't mean that as a private citizen he should be opposed to traveling on them. It just means he doesn't think the jet owners who are not in the charter transportation business should get a tax break for having and using them.
Aside:
The thing about charter jet companies is that some of them, like the ones linked above, are "proper" charter transportation companies, albeit catering to the luxury segment of the market. Others, however, are little more than "shell companies" of a sort that exist mainly so their owners can avail themselves of the tax advantages of doing of owning a corporate jet company.
As for why Obama bothered to highlight the "corporate jet" tax break issue, well, I suspect it had more to do with optics than anything else. In this instance, however, the optics of people flying around in luxury jets and thereby avoiding all the things that make commercial airline travel a PITA -- extra time needed to fly commercial, electronic device restrictions, booking and itinerary change hassles, airport security, crappy food, nickel and diming over "stupid sh*t," noisy/unruly children on the plane, the occasional airline crew member who's on a "power trip," hijacking risk, cramped cabins, lost or damaged luggage, nasty restrooms, etc. -- and at the same time getting the best tax deduction possible while doing so aren't good at all.
That said, there are plenty of savvy and not billionaire-class rich folks who frequently travel by private jet. It's vastly more convenient and nearly as expensive as it may seem, particularly when one and two or three friends decide to take, say, a weekend trip skiing or to a social event a friend elsewhere hosts. That's especially so for certain U.S. destinations like Vail, Tahoe, Jackson Hole and other places where the cost of commercial air travel is "stupid" expensive and/or often enough there is no commercial airline that flies to the airport there.
It's also worth noting that not always are private/charter airplanes dripping with luxury appointments. Seely Lake (MT), Musha Cay (Bahamas), Nemacolin (PA), Minam River (OR), Bar 10 (AZ), or any of a number of other destinations have airstrips, but not ones long enough for a jet. (What's luxurious about going to those places? Not having to put up with all the BS of the hoi polloi and nincompoops who comprise "the general public" and suffering the crap that's got to be in place for businesses and localities to accommodate them -- lines, rules about "this and that" and what one can and cannot do, etc.).
Minam River -- Yes, that landing strip you see is level ground covered with grass.
Seely Lake
- Private Aircraft
- Tax Benefits of Business Aircraft Ownership (1)
- Private Jet as Security Write-Off?
- Tax Benefits of Aircraft Ownership (2)
As for why Obama bothered to highlight the "corporate jet" tax break issue, well, I suspect it had more to do with optics than anything else. In this instance, however, the optics of people flying around in luxury jets and thereby avoiding all the things that make commercial airline travel a PITA -- extra time needed to fly commercial, electronic device restrictions, booking and itinerary change hassles, airport security, crappy food, nickel and diming over "stupid sh*t," noisy/unruly children on the plane, the occasional airline crew member who's on a "power trip," hijacking risk, cramped cabins, lost or damaged luggage, nasty restrooms, etc. -- and at the same time getting the best tax deduction possible while doing so aren't good at all.
That said, there are plenty of savvy and not billionaire-class rich folks who frequently travel by private jet. It's vastly more convenient and nearly as expensive as it may seem, particularly when one and two or three friends decide to take, say, a weekend trip skiing or to a social event a friend elsewhere hosts. That's especially so for certain U.S. destinations like Vail, Tahoe, Jackson Hole and other places where the cost of commercial air travel is "stupid" expensive and/or often enough there is no commercial airline that flies to the airport there.
It's also worth noting that not always are private/charter airplanes dripping with luxury appointments. Seely Lake (MT), Musha Cay (Bahamas), Nemacolin (PA), Minam River (OR), Bar 10 (AZ), or any of a number of other destinations have airstrips, but not ones long enough for a jet. (What's luxurious about going to those places? Not having to put up with all the BS of the hoi polloi and nincompoops who comprise "the general public" and suffering the crap that's got to be in place for businesses and localities to accommodate them -- lines, rules about "this and that" and what one can and cannot do, etc.).
Minam River -- Yes, that landing strip you see is level ground covered with grass.
Seely Lake
