Unlike most Britons with second homes on the Continent, Jane Howell is not an expert in how to get the best deals from easyJet and Ryanair.

She flies herself in her own aircraft, having just become the first British owner of one of a new generation of very small, relatively cheap jets.

Cruising at nearly 400mph at 41,000ft, well above most commercial airliners and any bad weather, the Cessna Citation Mustang takes less than two hours to fly from Farnborough airport in Hampshire to Milan.

A Ryanair Boeing 737 would be a little faster but Ms Howell never has to endure the slow shuffle through Stansted security queues or the scrum at the gate for the least uncomfortable seats. Farnborough’s car park is just a few yards from the new private jet terminal, and it takes only two minutes to get to the aircraft door. Nor does the 47-year-old entrepreneur, who made her fortune by developing and then selling an office interior design business, miss the absence of a trolley service. She often stops for lunch at a small airport in France’s Champagne region, loading a few cases of wine into the luggage hold before taking off again.

The jet will allow her to divide her time between her homes in London, Salzburg and Portofino on the Italian Riviera.

Small airports across Europe are preparing for a rapid growth in private jet travel in the next five years. A mode of travel that was, until recently, the preserve of the super-wealthy has become affordable to people who never appear in any rich list.

British operators have ordered 200 very light jets, according to Ascend, an aviation consultancy. Half a dozen models, which all weigh less than 10,000lb (4536kg), are being introduced this year. The six-seat Mustang, costing about £1.3 million, is not the cheapest but Ms Howell chose it because it is simple for a single pilot to fly. Commercial aircraft are required to have two pilots but she very rarely has another pilot next to her. Her husband does not have a pilot’s licence, so there are never any arguments over who will take the controls.

She used to fly propeller-driven aircraft and had a few safety scares, including an engine failure over Exeter and loss of cabin pressure over mountains in Greenland. “The big advantage of a light jet is that it is much faster and gets you through the bad weather much more quickly. This aircraft also alerts you to other traffic and the display shows you where they are, so you feel much safer.”

Ms Howell said that her journey plans were sometimes affected by the same factors that delay commercial flights, such as fog or air traffic control problems. “The difference is that I can check these things out before I leave home and alter my route or change the time I travel. I do not get stuck in packed airport departure lounges, waiting ages for announcements. The older I get, the more frustrating I find all the uncertainty and queueing of commercial flights.”

The environmental impact of aviation has recently begun to cause her more concern, but she said: “The Mustang is one of the quietest and most fuel-efficient jets. Everyone has to make their own decision on how they want to live and mine is that I am going to fly my own jet.”

High life

The costs of owning and flying a Cessna Citation Mustang

Purchase price £1.3 million

Maintenance £150 per flying hour

Fuel £150 per flying hour

Average landing fee £100

Average air traffic control fee per flight £100

Insurance £10,000 per year

Airport parking £500 to £5,000 a month

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