Here's What It's Like To Fly In A Private Plane Over The Gorgeous Arizona Desert
The flight left from Cutter Aviation Phoenix Sky Harbor, a small airport outside Phoenix.
An electronic sign thanked our plane for visiting.
There were about 30 journalists and Jaguar Land Rover employees on the flight, so there wasn't too much luggage to load.
Everyone soon boarded the Embraer EMB 120 Brasilia, a twin turbo-prop plane.
There was even a welcome mat.
The plane itself was nothing fancy, and the seats did not offer a lot of room.
At least I got to sit in the exit row.
Waiting for me on my seat was a Land Rover blanket.
Waiting on the runway, we watched a United flight take off.
We guessed the blimp in the sky was there for the Waste Management Phoenix Open, a golf tournament.
The view of the Phoenix suburbs is nothing special.
Once we were in the air, the flight attendant passed out warm towels.
Then she came through with drinks and a basket of snacks.
The pilots let everyone into the cabin to look out the windshield. With security what it is on most flights, this is a rare pleasure.
But the real draw of the flight was the scenery. Below is Humphreys Peak, the tallest mountain in Arizona.
With the noise of the propellers and the scenery below, there was little conversation between passengers. This is how most people spent the flight.
Even in the desert, there was snow on the ground.
Before long, we were flying over Grand Canyon National Park.
Then we got to see the Grand Canyon itself.
The view from the air is much cooler than seeing it from the ground. Unfortunately, we didn't get too close.
Too soon for my taste, the canyon was behind us.
Then we got to Lake Powell.
The man-made reservoir is a popular destination, especially for boaters.
Created by the Glen Canyon Dam, its shore line measures 1,900 miles.
After about an hour in the air, we landed in Page, in northern Arizona.
The view of the desert is marred by the Navajo Generating Station, a coal-fired powerplant. Most of the electricity produced is used to pump water to Phoenix.
As soon as the plane stopped, a fleet of new Range Rovers rolled up.
We stopped for a moment to watch Canadian Air Force pilots on practice runs.
And we spotted the brand new Gulfstream G650, a $64.5 million private jet. Apparently, it was in Page for a photo shoot.
Then we hopped into the Range Rovers and crossed over the border into Utah.
And headed into the desert, where we spent the next two days driving the new luxury SUV.
Now see how it feels to fly American over the Atlantic >
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