Business jet industry fights bad press

Under attack, flight industry reaches out to the media to counter negative headlines

For the business jet industry, the first wave of bad press came in November when the CEOs of the big three U.S. automakers flew to the nation’s capital in three separate aircraft to testify that their industry needed a bailout to avoid bankruptcy.

The second came at the end of January when Sen. Carl Levin lambasted executives from Citigroup, which had already received a federal bailout, for approving the purchase of a $50 million corporate jet.

Then news broke that former Citigroup CEO Sandy Weill used one of the bank’s jets to whisk his family to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, to ring in the New Year.

When faced with that kind of negative press, the only thing to do is reach out to the media and make it clear that such abuses are aberrations, says Katie Pribyl, communications director of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA).