Patent ID: 7124089

Claim:
A method for pricing and reserving charter aircraft services, comprising: maintaining a charter aircraft information database that includes status, flight characteristics, present location, operational costs, and information about occupancy capacity for each of a plurality of charter aircraft; receiving, using a computer, itinerary information from a user including at least one departure location, at least one destination location, at least one departure date, and a total number of passengers; accessing the charter aircraft information database containing information about the plurality of charter aircraft; accessing an airport information database, wherein the airport information database contains airport specific information such as longitudinal and latitudinal coordinates, elevation and runway restrictions for each airport; identifying suitable charter aircraft by; (1) comparing the itinerary information with the charter aircraft information, (2) determining which of the charter aircraft are compatible with airports within a prescribed radius of the user's at least one departure location, (3) determining which of the charter aircraft are compatible with airports within a prescribed radius of the user's at least one destination location, (4) comparing the itinerary information with the charter aircraft information by (a) determining the status of each charter aircraft, wherein the status of each charter aircraft is either a positive status or a negative status, (b) determining whether each charter aircraft has appropriate flight characteristics, and (c) determining whether each charter aircraft has a present location within the prescribed radius of the user's designated at least one departure location, and (5) eliminating charter aircraft with insufficient seating capacity; determining a charter price for at least one of the identified suitable charter aircraft by; (1) obtaining a cost of operating each of the suitable charter aircraft from the charter aircraft information database, (2) calculating a flight factor for flying each of the suitable charter aircraft from the user's at least one departure location to the user's at least one destination location, wherein the flight factor is at least one of an approximate flight time between the user's at least one departure location and the user's at least one destination location and an approximate flight distance between the user's at least one departure location and the user's at least one destination location, (3) calculating a total charter price based on the operating cost and the calculated flight factor for each of the suitable charter aircraft; transmitting, using a computer, the charter price accompanied by corresponding charter aircraft information for at least one of the identified suitable charter aircraft for which a charter price has been determined; and reserving the suitable charter aircraft in response to input from the user.