Charter broker
A charter broker is an intermediary who sources aircraft from certificated operators on the customer's behalf, negotiates the price and manages the trip, earning a commission or mark-up of roughly 5–15%. Brokers do not own or operate aircraft, so they cannot be audited for safety the way operators can, although some join accreditation schemes such as BACA in the UK or ACA in the US. A good broker knows which operators are reliable, has leverage on price and will tell you the operator and tail number without being asked. A poor one adds cost and hides who is actually flying you; the US DOT requires brokers to disclose the operator before you pay.