Some potential customers of air taxis say that saving time outweighs the extra cost, roughly equivalent to a first-class commercial fare.
The first lady would reimburse only the equivalent of first-class commercial tickets for herself and her daughter Sasha, the rest of the seats being occupied mainly by Secret Service.
Instead of repaying the government based on the cost of first-class commercial airfare, as presidents had since Jimmy Carter defeated Gerald R. Ford, reimbursements must now reflect the cost of chartering a 737 aircraft.
The first lady reimbursed the government for the equivalent of first-class commercial tickets for herself and her daughter, Sasha, with the rest of the seats on her government plane occupied mainly by Secret Service employees.
Federal election rules allow candidates to reimburse corporate jet owners for travel by paying first-class commercial rates and in some instances coach rates for each passenger, making corporate and private jets less expensive in most cases than charters.
Mrs. Clinton flies on government aircraft on the advice of the Secret Service and reimburses the government the same way that presidential candidates do: at the rate of a first-class commercial ticket.
The boys tag along on enough of the 300,000 air miles she logs each year to think that chartered jets, an Enron corporate jet or first-class commercial seats are ordinary ways to travel.
That gets you four passenger seats; if your party can use all four, you are paying $500 apiece, about the same as a first-class commercial flight between, say, Chicago and St . Louis
They include "round-trip, first-class commercial air travel for two between Anchorage, Alaska, and event city," (not an unreasonable request).
Although the charter cost $14,000 -- more than double what he would have paid had they traveled first class on a commercial airline -- he said it was worth every penny.
And those who are business travelers will be able to spend a little bit more than a first class ticket on a commercial airline, but not have to worry about all the usual security and boarding and whatever muss-and-fuss that the hoi polloi put up with.
