With privacy growing increasingly scarce, VistaJet has been taking steps to practice high levels of discretion with its clientele. Since many of its clients rank among the world’s best-known business magnates and celebrities, VistaJet founder Thomas Flohr has engineered the company’s operations to ensure passengers enjoy privacy along with comfort and efficiency.
It’s an aspect of what Vistajet offers that was born out of consumer demand. When passengers include the likes of former President Barack Obama, Taylor Swift, and George Clooney, it’s imperative to provide a service where the clientele’s privacy ranks at the top of the priority list.
This commitment to anonymity is underpinned by a uniform fleet of planes with rotating tail numbers, ensuring that 99% of VistaJet clients remain unidentified during their travels. The approach has become popular as VistaJet’s flight hours hit a record pace.
Thomas Flohr said Vistajet’s success is driven by a unique model and a commitment to consistent service. Unlike other private business aviation companies, VistaJet offers its clients a subscription service in which they only pay for the use of planes when needed. This saves businesses and individuals the cost of jet ownership and maintenance.
“In today’s world, to build a brand is extremely difficult,” Flohr told McKinsey & Co. “And you’ll see us advancing and accelerating because we’ve built a strong brand. I don’t think there is any revolutionary action needed other than providing service at the highest level and doing it consistently over a very long period of time.”
Nowadays, when the movements of high-profile individuals are often under scrutiny, VistaJet’s unwavering commitment to client privacy is one factor that sets it apart in the private aviation industry.
A Uniform VistaJet Fleet Provides a Cloak of Anonymity
VistaJet’s fleet is instantly recognizable by its distinctive silver-and-red livery. This uniform appearance serves a dual purpose: It reinforces the brand’s identity while acting as a cloak of anonymity for its passengers. Unlike other private jet services that may feature personalized or unique aircraft designs, VistaJet’s standardized fleet ensures that no single plane draws undue attention.
In aviation, tail numbers function as unique identifiers for aircraft, akin to license plates for cars. These alphanumeric codes can be used to track aircraft movements, potentially compromising the privacy of its passengers. In a famous case, a university student in Florida has tracked Elon Musk’s private jet for years, first on X and now on Mastodon, something Musk called a “direct personal safety risk.”
By flying with different VistaJet aircraft, travelers avoid this issue. VistaJet also has a firm policy of protecting its clients’ identities. For example, while multiple media outlets have reported on the high-profile people who have flown on VistaJet, that information comes from third parties or the celebrity themselves. VistaJet never discloses or even suggests who flies with them.
Flohr ensures VistaJet extends that discretion to all its clients. In an interview with The Extravagant, he talked about places VistaJet travels.
“Our pilots are certified for snow and difficult landing, and the training we provide is way above the strictest national regulations,” he said. “Our customers ask us to reach incredible private islands, or the top of mountains, at any time of the year. Unfortunately, I cannot provide you much more details to protect our client’s privacy.”
VistaJet also has systems in place to protect clients’ personal data. The company adheres to stringent data protection laws, including the General Data Protection Regulation and the California Consumer Privacy Act. These regulations mandate safeguards against unauthorized access to personal information.
VistaJet’s privacy notice explicitly states its dedication to respecting client privacy and outlines the measures in place to protect personal data, ensuring that information related to travel itineraries, personal preferences, and other sensitive details remains confidential. Regular audits and compliance checks are conducted to ensure that all data protection measures are up to date and effective, aligning with international standards and regulations.
Thomas Flohr Made Privacy, Discretion, and Luxury Part of His Business Plan
The stringent privacy protocols at VistaJet are a direct reflection of the vision of its founder and chairman, Thomas Flohr. Born in Switzerland, Flohr’s journey into aviation was preceded by a successful career in asset finance. He ventured into private aviation, founding VistaJet in 2004 in Malta after identifying a gap in the market for a global private jet service.
In addition to privacy, the focus is on luxury. For example, VistaJet cabin crews are trained by the British Butler Institute, MedAire, Norland College, and the Wine and Spirit Education Trust. VistaJet also offers a wellness program that offers preflight, in-flight, and postflight health and wellness-focused services.
The same uniform design for the exterior of the plane also is used for interiors. The aircraft cabins, which feature dark wood and Italian leather, are equipped with office equipment to maximize productivity. “But, most important, VistaJet is renowned for the only consistent fleet in the industry: The interior of our aircraft is identical throughout the entire fleet,” Flohr told The Extravagant.
It has proved to be a successful approach. Under Flohr’s leadership, the company has grown from a European startup with two aircraft into a leading global aviation company connecting every continent. In the latest in a string of accolades, VistaJet recently won the award for Best Private Aviation Company at the Leaders of Luxury Summit Best of the Best gala dinner hosted by The Robb Report Hong Kong.
Part of the company’s success is tied to its subscription model. As Flohr told McKinsey & Co., the benefits extend beyond price and privacy. The three-year contract clients sign with VistaJet also offers advantages.
“Another way we’ve made this attractive is that when corporations buy an aircraft, they’re generally looking at a minimum of a five-year horizon. We offer a three-year horizon, and then you can either renew or exit the contract, which provides more flexibility,” Flohr said.
The privacy created by having a global fleet of aircraft does extends to removing limits to choosing the right plane for each flight. Thomas Flohr said with VistaJet, a client “can choose the right aircraft for each individual trip, rather than just buying one aircraft — which, if it’s too small, might not be able to make a certain trip nonstop, or if it’s too big, it creates waste on short hops.”
