When it comes to private jet bathrooms, not all aircraft are created equal.
Some private jets have multiple lavatories onboard. Some have showers. Others have a curtain with a small chemical toilet. Others have no toilet at all.
Therefore, choosing the right aircraft that will match your expectations is critical. Here is what you can expect from the bathroom on a private jet.
Do All Private Jets Have Bathrooms?
No, not all private jets have bathrooms onboard.
The majority of private planes do with this being true for pretty much all light jets and larger.
However, there are a few very light jets that do not have any toilets onboard. The private jets with no toilets onboard are the Eclipse 500, Eclipse 550, and Cirrus Vision Jet.
In these circumstances, you will have to use the facilities at the FBO before or after your flight.
The reason being that the flights taken on these very light jets are so short, typically up to one hour, that the majority of the time a toilet is not required.
The Types of Bathrooms Found on Private Jets
There are two types of bathrooms that you will find on a private jet – semi-enclosed and fully-enclosed – along with some aircraft, such as the Global 7500, having a shower onboard.
As previously mentioned, there are also some aircraft that have no toilet facilities onboard. However, no toilet is no included as a type of bathroom on a business jet.
Semi-Enclosed Toilet
As the name suggests, a semi-enclosed toilet is one that provides some level of privacy, albeit very minimal.
These toilets typically come with what is known as an emergency toilet. This is a chemical toilet that is only used when absolutely necessary.
This kind of toilet is found on smaller aircraft, such as the Cessna Citation Mustang and Embraer Phenom 100.
This kind of toilet is usually located at the front of the cabin between the cockpit and the cabin with a privacy curtain to provide some level of separation from the rest of the cabin.
Fully-Enclosed Lavatory
A fully-enclosed lavatory is the kind that one typically imagines when thinking about what private jet toilets are like.
There are many ways to separate the bathroom from the main cabin with popular options including a swinging door, bi-fold doors, or sliding pocket doors that meet to create a solid door.
These toilets will often include a flushable toilet on larger jets and, especially on small private jets, a certified lav seat which includes a seat belt and comfortable seat cushion.
These smaller jets often have a chemical toilet in order to reduce complexity and weight.
Showers Onboard
For the ultimate long-range jets and airliners that have been converted for private use, passengers may find a shower in the aircraft’s bathroom.
Aircraft such as the Embraer Lineage 1000E, Global 7500, and Gulfstream G600 can optionally be fitted with a shower in the bathroom.
Given the space requirements for a shower onboard, both in terms of the vertical and surface area, showers can only be fitted to aircraft with large enclosed bathrooms.
Additionally, in order to facilitate the shower a large volume of water is required onboard. This, naturally, increased take-off weight.
What is the Privacy Like Onboard?
As described with the types of toilets onboard, privacy can vary.
If there is a toilet onboard the aircraft then visually there is a high level of privacy, whether that be a curtain or a proper door.
However, the main privacy will come from the sound insulation of the bathroom.
On these long-range business jets, there is excellent sound insulation and a greater distance from the passenger cabin.
Moreover, many long-range private jets have a cabin in the front and aft of the cabin, meaning you can choose the more private option.
However, when there is simply a toilet with a privacy curtain there is less noise insulation. As a result, these facilities are only to be used when strictly necessary.
How Is the Lavatory on a Business Jet Emptied?
As you would expect when dealing with sewage, the process of emptying the toilet from a private jet is a careful and meticulous one. However, it is no different to that of a commercial airliner, there is just less volume.
After landing, ground crew members connect a specialized vehicle to the external waste disposal system of the aircraft.
This vehicle, often referred to as a “honey cart,” then pumps out the waste from the onboard storage tanks.
The waste is then transported to an appropriate waste management facility, where it is treated and disposed of according to environmental regulations and standards.
This ensures the utmost level of hygiene and sanitation, maintaining the pristine condition of your private jet bathroom.
Very Light Jets
Very Light Jets are the smallest jets on the market, such as the Embraer Phenom 100EV and Cessna Citation Mustang.
However, despite being the smallest jets on the market, the lavatory facilities vary significantly.
For example, take the Eclipse 500, Eclipse 550, and Cirrus Vision Jet. These aircraft are intended for short flights – generally no more than 60 minutes.
Therefore, the decision was made by the manufacturers that a toilet could be excluded from the cabin. This is because the bathroom facilities would rarely be used.
This is one of the reasons that these aircraft are as small as they are. Additionally, the fewer facilities onboard, the lower the weight and cabin size. Not only does this reduce the overall manufacturing costs but also reduces the operating costs. A win-win for owners looking to fly short hops.
The next step up is the semi-enclosed lavatories. In these circumstances, you will find a liftable seat cushion that exposes a chemical toilet.
There will be no doors surrounding the seat and the toilet does not flush. However, there may be a removable privacy curtain.
In the VLJ category, the primary offender for the emergency toilet is the Cessna Citation Mustang. With the Mustang, the semi-enclosed lav is located between the cockpit and the main cabin.
However, even within the VLJ category, there are aircraft that feature a fully enclosed lavatory.
For example, the HondaJet. Here there is a solid door separating the toilet from the main cabin. Additionally, there is a wash hand basin available.
Light Jets Bathrooms
Despite light jets being larger than VLJs, the toilet facilities aren’t significantly above those of the top-end VLJs.
The primary benefit will be more space.
Given the size of the VLJs, passengers will struggle to stand up while in the lavatory.
However, light jets will provide slightly more space within the bathroom.
Typically features are some form of solid door, whether that be a swinging door, bi-fold door, sliding pocket door, or an accordion door.
Generally speaking, most light jets will feature a flushable toilet, wash basin, mirror, and maybe even some storage.
Additionally, most light jets will have a seatbelt and cover available for the lavatory. This provides an additional, certified passenger seat.
Midsize Jets
The upgrade from light jets to midsize jets is similar to that of VLJs to light jets.
The basic facilities remain the same – a flushing lavatory, wash basin, mirror, and some storage.
However, the key upgrade is more space and the potential for the space to be used as a private dressing area.
Given that these are the aircraft that are being used to fly for up to five hours, the toilet facilities are more important than aircraft that are only flying for an hour.
Additionally, the cabin of a midsize jet is larger, translating to more bathroom space.
Large Jet Bathrooms
Large jets are where the bathroom facilities start to get exciting. Additionally, large jets are the point at which the bathroom can start to be used for just that – bathing.
Given that these are the aircraft that are flying for, in some cases, up to 14 or 15 hours, the facilities need to be impeccable.
Moreover, given that some of the top-end large jets cost upwards of $70 million, the bathroom facilities need to be of the highest quality.
With some long-range jets, you will find more of the same in the bathroom – that is a flushing toilet, sink, mirror, and storage. However, the space increases, the facilities, and fixtures are of higher quality, and there will likely be better lighting.
However, when you start to get into territory such as the Bombardier Global family, the flagship Gulfstream family, and the flagship Dassault aircraft, the bathroom facilities reach new heights.
Not only is this seen in terms of more substantial facilities, but natural lights, such as a skylight on some aircraft, and a shower.
Additionally, some large aircraft can be fitted with multiple lavatories. Therefore, if one passenger is using the shower it doesn’t prevent other passengers from using the lavatory.
VIP Airliners Bathrooms
VIP Airliners take bathroom facilities to an even greater level.
When it comes to the likes of the Boeing Business Jets (BBJ), Airbus Corporate Jets (ACJ), and Embraer Lineage 1000E, there is a lot of space to work with. Additionally, these aircraft are so customizable that almost anything goes.
In some cases, owners have options for multiple bathrooms, spa facilities, and even Turkish baths.
Generally speaking, passengers will find a toilet and shower available in the middle of the aircraft, along with ensuite facilities at the rear attached to the VIP bedroom. It is also likely that there will be a toilet upfront for the crew.
Summary
When it comes to bathrooms on private jets there is quite a significant range. Therefore, it is important to check which facilities you can expect on your specific aircraft.
For example, the Cessna Citation Mustang with just a non-flushable chemical toilet behind a curtain, all the way up to the Falcon 8X with a shower onboard.
Moreover, even within the same class, there can be significant variations in facilities, as you have seen with the HondaJet. An aircraft that packs a lot in such a small area.
Featured Image: SturmUfa / Shutterstock.com
