Concorde made it's last flight a few years ago now, but the desire for fast long range travel hasn't gone away. At present the fastest business jet available is the Cessna Citation which can reach speeds of around 685mph.

That is a top speed and not cruising speed but even so it can still fly from New York to London in about 5 hours.

Fortunately several entrepreneurs are working hard to meet the demand for supersonic business jets with plans on the drawing boards that are being prototyped.

One frontrunner is the Aerion SBJ supersonic business jet. It's financially backed by Texas billionair Robert Bass and has the expertise of several highly experienced executives and engineers. Aerion plans to deliver the first model by 2014. This company has a solid plan and realistic technology.

Wind tunnel tests show that Richard Tracy, the brains behind the project who has been developing the ideas for 20 years, has laminar flow designs that work. Sonic booms are against regulations in some areas (like over major cities), and allowed in others (over the ocean).

That means the plane can push to supersonic speeds in areas where booms are allowed and fly just under Mach 1 over others such as heavily populated areas.

The Aerion supersonic business jet will reach a top speed of Mach 1.6 (1,200 miles per hour) which is more than double the speed of a commercial jet. It's spacious 30ft cabin will be able to accomodate up to 12 passengers in luxurious comfort.

If it goes into production it will allow non stop travel from Europe to North America and back in one day. It will The cost of buying one is expected to be around $80 million. This might sound very expensive for a small jet but there are many potential buyers already hoping to get one of these supersonic jets.

The first Gulfstream aircraft was produced in 1958 and in it's time was considered a top of the range private aircraft. It was the first twin engine corporate jet in America to reach a cruising height of 30,000ft

Decades ago travelling in a Gulfstream jet was almost exclusively the province of the ultra rich with tons of disposable income. They gave a level of privacy, comfort and convenience not matched by any major airline company.

Flights were scheduled to the traveller's needs and not the airline's, and with a large choice of smaller airfields people could be transported much closer to their destination, cutting down on travelling time.

Many private jets today are very luxurious indeed and have all the trimmings and amenities found in a corporate boardroom including plush carpets, oak trimmings and leather seats.

You may find a bar and kitchen area with crystal glasses and silver plated cutlery. Not the typical plastic cups and plates found in economy class in a commercial airline.

In 2003 the Gulfstream aircraft 550 went into production. It's made by General Dynamics in Savannah Georgia and it's large spacious cabin can accommodate up to 19 passengers.

It can reach distances of up to 6,750 nautical miles, making it the longest range business jet in the world

If the thought of buying your own private jet seems light years away and only for the very wealthy then have you considered buying a fractional jet ownership?

It's very similar to buying a time share in that you are purchasing a fraction of ownership in flight time per year.

For example a one sixteenth of fractional jet ownership can buy you 50 hours a year in which to use the aircraft. This can work out to be very affordable and in some cases not a lot more expensive than buying a first class ticket onboard a regular commercial airline.

A cost effective alternative to fractional jet ownership is Blue Star Jet's Sky Card service. You don't pay a monthly management fee and Blue Star have access to over 4,000 jets worldwide.

If you hate the time spent in crowded airports waiting around for a delayed flight or standing in a seemingly endless queue at checkout then give some thought to other options open to you for air travel. You don't have to be mega rich to fly in comfort these days.