Do Shark Tank stars fly commercial or private jet? Shark Tank has been a television staple since 2009, changing numerous lives and introducing America to up-and-coming businesses, goods, and services. Many deals made on this program have also made several known investors even wealthier.
Considering all the money accrued from these deals, how do all the Sharks travel? Do they have a collection of private aircraft or save money by flying coach? Here is the current flight situation of each main Shark Tank investor.
Mark Cuban
As the wealthiest Shark on the show, Cuban owns four aircraft. Years earlier, in 1993, he also had a lifetime pass at American Airlines, for which he paid over $100,000.
The former Shark Tank star exited the show after Season 16 and set a Guinness World Record in 1999 when he purchased the Gulfstream V private jet. At $40 million, this was the largest online transaction at the time. That same year, he bought another aircraft for the Dallas Mavericks, a Boeing 757, which he customized to meet the team’s needs.
Later, the Mavericks received an upgraded commercial plane–a Boeing 767-200ER. This aircraft was scrapped and sold for parts in 2021.
Cuban also acquired a Bombardier Global Express, which he uses as his current private jet.
Robert Herjavec
Herjavec has purchased two private jets in his lifetime. His first jet was a Bombardier Challenger 604. While owning this jet, he also owned two Magellan Jet charter memberships.
When asked by Magellan Jet why he has a charter membership while he has his own jet, Herjavec stated that the aircraft is ‘the ultimate time machine,’ elaborating that time is a resource that can’t be replaced like money can be.
Herjavec later replaced the Bombardier with the Gulfstream IV-SP at some point in 2017. While he enjoyed the 604, he summarized the decision by stating, ‘It’s hard to beat windows on a Gulfstream.’
The Croatian-born investor says he’s in the air for around 300 hours yearly and claims he spends all those hours in the cabin working.
Daymond John
Aside from being a superstar investor, John was also on the Jetset Magazine editorial board until 2018. In his write-ups, he documented how owning a private jet was considered the ‘ultimate status symbol.’
While he doesn’t specify the plane he purchased, he claims he bought it in 1999 only to resell it in 2002. Finances were the primary reason he switched to chartering a jet rather than owning one.
The Shark Tank investor claims to charter a private jet around 30 times yearly. He gave this endorsement on charter jet company JetSmarter in 2016:
“Personally, I have been using JetSmarter for a while now, and I could not be happier. When I have to go shoot Shark Tank, or speak at something like the Global Entrepreneur Summit, I just fire up the app or give them a call, and I have a G4 waiting for me in no time. It is honestly as easy as booking a commercial flight on Expedia, maybe even easier.”
Kevin O’Leary
The most cautious of the Shark Tank stars, with the fewest deals made, Kevin O’Leary rides a private jet and travels in first class on commercial flights. It isn’t known at this time, however, whether he owns or charters a private jet.
In his 2013 book Cold Hard Truth About Family, Kids, and Money, O’Leary revealed that whenever he flies commercially with his son Trevor, he makes him sit in economy while O’Leary himself sits in first class. In response to his son’s complaint, O’Leary wrote:
‘My son is making the connection between money and personal freedom. I think that’s the greatest gift I’ve ever given him: to help him see that connection. And I constantly reinforce it by doing “Mean Dad” things like making him sit in those crappy economy seats.‘
Lori Greiner
Unlike her male counterparts, Greiner flies commercial. While Greiner doesn’t publicly proclaim her allegiance to a particular airline, she has been known for flying first class with United for many years. She and the airline are based in Chicago, Illinois, so there could be more to the relationship than what’s known online.
On the ABC sitcom Shifting Gears, the character Georgia, played by Barrett Margolis, claims that Greiner travels by helicopter. However, there is no confirmation that Greiner owns or charters a helicopter.
Barbara Corcoran
Like Greiner, Corcoran also chooses flying commercial over owning or chartering a private jet. Corcoran, however, doesn’t even fly first class. Instead, she opts to fly coach along with other fellow travelers.
When explaining her decision, Corcoran had this to say on The Jamie Kern Lima Show:
‘Do you know what a first-class ticket costs? Listen, the way I figure it is, a coach ticket is about 25% of a first-class ticket. I get the free miles and I can give them away. I have everybody in my family flying on my free miles…What’s more important, that everybody gets free vacations or that I’m comfortable in first class? I guess I could afford to do both, but I won’t. I’ll be in coach feeling smug because I know I have three plane tickets that could take somebody somewhere. It accumulates, you know?‘
In a 2018 Forbes interview, Corcoran revealed she flies with JetBlue because of ‘adequate legroom and service’. She also has accumulated many miles on Delta Air Lines.
