Where do charter aircraft go for much of the day?

With rail and British Aeroflot strikes likely, the Lancey household is carefully planning its spring vacation.

As we scan through various brochures for holidays, idea after idea has to be rejected when we see the ‘antisocial hours’ of the associated charter flights.

What do the aircraft of charter airlines do between completing the early-morning flight with passengers who had to get up at 5am to reach the airport at 7am, then starting an evening flight that will return its human cargo to a UK airport so late at night that the poor creatures will have missed the last train home? Why can’t they fly at the sort of times when people want to fly? The scheduled airlines seem to be able to manage it…

Last autumn we faced the prospect of either an ‘obscene o’clock’ departure from home to catch a charter flight, or a 9am departure that would get us to Gatwick in time for a decent lunch followed by a scheduled flight that would see us arrive at out hotel in time to unpack, freshen up, and take a slow stroll in search of dinner. The decision was what I think is termed ‘a no-brainer’.