When transport of people and goods takes place within a territory, it is called a cabotage. Cabotage protects domestic players from foreign competition, mainly serving economic and protective purposes.  No foreign registered vessel or aircraft may operate in national territorial waters or airspace to carry goods or people.

Can a private jet fly internationally?

Of course, it can! But route matters. A private aircraft can land at any suitable airport. Frequent flyers prefer to land on smaller, non-commercial airports; no waiting in queues of swarming crowds once you land. It is safer, quicker, and efficient. Multi-leg flights with multiple destinations require charter analysts at Icarus Jet to remain consistently updated about aerial cabotage.

Cabotage rights ensure that only domestically registered private jets travel within cities in a specific country. For example, an aircraft charter from the UK with a G-registered tail number can enter the US to land in Dallas but may not operate from Dallas to Las Vegas with new passengers for hire. It can fly to another country after landing in Dallas if it has actively advertised for a charter flight. But if the same passengers that flew in from the UK to Dallas want to carry on to Las Vegas or anywhere else domestically in the USA, there will be no issues of cabotage.

Only a jet with an N-registered tail number is permitted to fly from Dallas to Las Vegas. However, it is ignored in some cases where the passenger list remains invariable between domestic destinations or when the operators have permissive tickets from national aviation authorities of that country. 

For travelers arriving into a country, these rules are more uncompromising than for those leaving it. EU members have relaxed most restrictions to facilitate trade. So, passengers can travel between most European cities easily! After Brexit in 2020, cabotage rights regulate over British skies. Switzerland and Norway are two other European nations where such restrictions also apply.

Private travel is all about luxury and flexibility. Our team at Icarus Jet is aware of all global limitations involving private rentals to help our clients enjoy their trips without worrying about international restrictions.