Tamsin Cocks
Editorast month, I took a total of eight flights – that’s a
personal best (though I’m sure it’s a record beaten many
times over by some readers). While I love to travel, and
still get a buzz out of the transit environment of airports,
four international trips in a month takes its toll.
I started to count the amount of time I spent loitering around
airports (never mind the to-ing and fro-ing, or the actual travel
time), and it totted up to more than 16 hours – that’s practically
an entire day! Yes, I spent time in the lounge, snatching half an
hour of work here and there, or enjoying a glass of bubbly and
a bite to eat, but inevitably there is still a hefty amount of dead
time. If only I had the resources to be able to charter a private jet
and cut out all of the unnecessary faffing...
As it turns out, this pipe dream may not be too far fetched.
In our feature “Jet set future” (page 34) we look at how the
marriage of technology and sharing economies is greatly
expanding the feasibility of private aviation to a wider circle of
business travellers. While Asia-Pacific is still in its infancy when
it comes to private jet travel, the groundwork being laid in the
US and Europe has exciting ramifications for this part of the
world, where economies are starting to boom and air travel is
rapidly increasing.
OK, we might not be quite able to purchase our own aircraft
any time soon, but booking a discounted leg on a jet that needs
to return to its base? When you consider the cost of an entire
day’s productivity versus the cost of the flight, perhaps it starts
to make business sense after all... Until then, I’ll continue to
treasure lounge access.
Elsewhere in this issue we look at the rapid infrastructural
changes sweeping across Jakarta as it emerges as one of the
world’s dominant economies (page 28), plus the frantic hotel
development currently happening in Sydney (page 48).
Our cover issue (p58) highlights the many perks of a weekend
in Denver, whose proximity to the Rocky Mountains is ideal for
those who enjoy an active break, while our feature on Fiji (p62)
details a very different kind of luxury retreat for those more
suited to lazing on soft, sandy beaches.
We can also finally reveal the winners of the 2017 Business
Traveller Asia Pacific Reader’s Poll – turn to page 42 for a full
rundown of who you’ve voted best in class this year. There are
some familiar faces, but also some surprise new entrants. As
always, if you disagree with the results, make sure you subscribe
to BTAP and have your say next year!businesstraveller.com6 I Check-in
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OCTOBER 2017