Runway Models

Boeing Business Jet

A cloudy Saturday morning. April showers have lingered into May, and your girl is giving you that look--that pouty, sexy, be-my-prince look. No problem. A quick check of the Weather Channel and you're on your way to the airport. You motor directly to the aircraft door and throw your keys to a parking attendant. A movie and a romantic interlude later and Customs is waiting for you on the tarmac. A limo idles nearby. Welcome to Florence. Tonight it's dinner near the Duomo, and tomorrow you'll hit the Italian Riviera for a swim. Her look confirms it: You are a prince. • If you've never lost that little-kid fascination with planes and adventure but are sick of the Transportation Security Administration making you take off your shoes, then private jets--to buy or charter--are the answer to the question you never thought to ask. The industry is coming out with a new breed of aircraft that achieves heights, distances and comforts inconceivable a few years ago. King-size bed? Check. Ethernet? Check. Shower? Of course. These yachts of the sky provide the ultimate in speed and convenience. They save time by allowing you to fly into small airports that cater to guys like you who don't wish to spend half their vacation waiting in lines. They supply a level of in-flight luxury on a par with a night at a four-star hotel. And as for safety, the old adage is true: You're safer flying to Tasmania than you are driving your car to work. The following fleet of jets represents the pinnacle of what's out there now (one is new to market this month). Some are capable of hurtling nonstop from New York to Tokyo or from Los Angeles to Moscow. At 51,000 feet, far above the turbulence and the Travelocity masses, you can actually see the curvature of the earth from the window. Don't have the cash to buy one outright? You can charter a jet for as little as $2,500 an hour (try L.A.-based Petersen Aviation at petersenaviation.com). It's not cheap, but neither is your time. • As morning falls on the historic streets of Florence, your travel companion rolls in your arms, a mischievous grin arching across her face. "You know what I'm in the mood for?" she asks. "Paella."

Boeing Business Jet

The Boeing Business Jet--essentially a private version of a Boeing 737--is the largest luxury jet you can buy or charter, with enough cabin space (807 square feet, to be exact) for a game of touch football. For $44.5 million you get the aircraft without any interior fittings, completely empty. Buyers can then deck it out however they desire. If you're like French fashion magnate Georges Marciano, who founded Guess and designed his BBJ's interior himself, you'll pimp the ride with another $10 million--gorgeous leathers, exotic woods, two sound systems, auto-sliding shades, three 42-inch flat-screen TVs, luxe couches and chairs, two foldout beds and a king in the master bedroom with Hermès blankets and pillows. (We photographed Marciano's BBJ, shown on the opening spread and here, with the exception of the shot at top left, which is of another BBJ.) Dreary day in your town? You can charter Marciano's plane for a mere $8,500 an hour (Clay Lacy Aviation, 818-989-2900), then sip caipirinhas with some friends all the way to Rio de Janeiro's Copacabana Palace (it'll take you about 10 hours to get there, nonstop of course). That fee includes a full staff--three flight attendants and three pilots. Order what you want to eat ahead of time and it will be served to you on fine china. Marciano set up his jet to seat nine very comfortable passengers, but depending on the configuration, a BBJ can seat up to 60. "It is the ultimate toy," Marciano says giddily. Coming from a guy who has a fleet of supercars in his garage, that's quite a review.

Dassault Falcon 900EX

During spring skiing season, when jumbos are forced to land in Denver, the agile Falcon glides onto the narrow, mountain-ringed runway at Aspen. The 900EX's heritage is the fighter jet; the aircraft are built side by side in France. Although the Falcon is more cramped than the BBJ, a model in Manolos could easily saunter about the cabin without ducking, and everything from the exterior paint to the sink is customizable. With a 4,500-mile range, it'll get you and 10 friends cross-continent or direct to the tiny Caribbean islands where airborne Fat Alberts fear to tread. Elite Aviation charters this bird for $3,900 an hour. Your ship just came in? Buy it new for $34.65 million (falconjet.com).

Bombardier Global 5000

Go ahead, say it. Slide the short syllables around in your mouth: Mach .89. That's how fast the Global 5000's two Rolls-Royce turbofan engines will thrust this jet through the skies on your way from a boring business meeting in Boston to Amsterdam's beckoning rowdiness. That means you're headed to a party at nearly the speed of sound. Count on arriving early. The Global 5000 represents the latest in technology, design and performance from Bombardier, the Quebec-based aviation powerhouse. The jet's wings-back stance and sharp bullet nose make it look like a 97-foot-long bird of prey, and those wings are specially designed to handle the Flash Gordon speeds. With the plane's impressive range of 4,800 nautical miles while carrying the weight of eight to 19 passengers along with a crew of three, transatlantic nonstop is over before you want it to be. You'll have 294 luxurious square feet to play with (that's more than some Manhattan apartments). Say you have work to do before you land. You can spread out in the main cabin, which is wired for e-mail or web browsing and has a printer-scanner-fax and just about anything else you'd like to hook up. You'll have four satellite phones at your fingers, enabling you to trade stocks in Boston and make dinner reservations at Amsterdam's Supperclub at the same time. Meanwhile your date for the weekend can sip Veuve Clicquot in a buttery leather seat in the aft galley with her own independent stereo system and temperature control, waiting not entirely patiently for you to initiate her into the mile high club. Congratulations--you have just redefined traveling in style. The price tag on the Global 5000 is a bargain compared with its more expensive competitors. The first planes are just now rolling out of the factory, so they're tough to charter, but you can purchase a new one for $33.5 million (bombardier.com).

Gulfstream G550

The American-made Gulfstream is the foremost object of desire among masters of the universe, a superjet with the luxury of a Bentley and the attitude of a Ferrari. Steve Jobs owns a Gulfstream. Mark Cuban does too. Scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration chase down storms in one. It's got goodies your pilot will dig (something about being able to see through clouds), but let's be honest: What you care about is the jealousy of colleagues and the lust of the ladies. The plane has a range of 6,750 miles, a ceiling of 51,000 feet and a coolness rating of 10. You can circumnavigate the globe, stopping only once, and you can do it quickly (top speed: Mach .885). It has the latest entertainment systems, holds up to 19 passengers and is fully customizable, so you can max out the interior with a master bedroom, a shower and a galley. You can charter a G550 for $8,000 an hour at bluestarjets.com or buy one new for $45.75 million (gulfstream.com). Feel free to have your portrait painted on the fuselage.