The Federal Aviation Administration came down hard on two Part 135 charter operators in late May and early June 2026, hitting them with a combined $440,000 in civil penalties for international flight violations and pilot qualification lapses. The actions signal an intensifying FAA crackdown on paperwork compliance in the on-demand charter sector.
Planet Nine Private Air—a Van Nuys, California–based charter and aircraft management company—faces a $336,000 civil penalty for alleged violations of international aviation regulations and what the FAA characterizes as careless and reckless flight operations. According to the agency, the operator intentionally submitted 21 inaccurate flight plans between November 2023 and August 2024, describing passenger charter flights as general aviation operations rather than commercial charter missions. Those flights connected the United States with Canada, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.
The distinction matters. Commercial charter operations require overflight permits, landing authorizations, and procedural compliance requirements that general aviation flights sidestep. The FAA also alleges Planet Nine failed to obtain required permits and neglected to follow its own Oceanic and International Procedures Manual on flights operated by its managed fleet of Bombardier Global Express, Gulfstream G-series, and Dassault Falcon 7X aircraft.
Planet Nine disputed the allegations in a statement, attributing the issues to operational challenges common in international private aviation—last-minute itinerary changes, delays in obtaining foreign permits, and the complexities of managing a dynamic fleet. The company contended that U.S.-based charter operators face regulatory disadvantages compared with certain foreign competitors afforded operational flexibility unavailable to American on-demand carriers.
Six days later, the FAA proposed a $104,000 penalty against Private Jets Inc., operating out of Oklahoma City Wiley Post Airport. An employee piloted several flights in April 2025 without holding the required certifications to serve as pilot-in-command, second-in-command, or for the specific aircraft type. The pilot had not completed recurrent testing and checks mandated within the preceding 12 months—a regulatory violation that triggered enforcement action despite no accident or incident occurring.
Company president Eric Wells responded that Private Jets Inc. is “committed to maintaining the highest standards of safety and regulatory compliance, as our safety record of over 30 years indicates.” The statement added that internal verification procedures ensure alignment with federal aviation standards and expressed confidence in a positive resolution.
These cases fit a larger pattern. Between March 2024 and June 2026, the FAA announced eleven major actions against Part 135 operators, with eight proposed fines totaling approximately $1.51 million. The average penalty exceeds $189,000. The enforcement posture has hardened: early 2024 cases meant fines; by 2025 and 2026, the FAA began revoking certificates outright—operational ejection from the field.
Congress raised maximum fines per violation to $75,000 in 2024, but real leverage lies elsewhere. The FAA charges per flight, per pilot, per falsified record, or per day of continued operation. Totals pile up fast.
Both Planet Nine and Private Jets Inc. have 30 days from receipt of the FAA’s enforcement letter to respond. These remain proposed penalties; neither company has paid, and settlements often land below the initial figure. The reputational and insurance damage, though, hits immediately upon public disclosure.
The FAA has signaled intent to initiate rulemaking that would classify public charters under the same safety parameters as non-public charter operations—potentially narrowing the regulatory gap that operators like Planet Nine have reportedly exploited.
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