Mar. 24, 2003 - It's a logical but luxurious pairing: fractional jets and fractional condominiums. 

The Ritz-Carlton Club, which operates upscale timeshare resorts called fractionals, has teamed with Marquis Jet Partners to offer club members the convenience and cachet of private jets. 

The program is designed for people who want private-jet travel without the expense of the long-term commitment most fractional jet programs require. 

Marquis Jet Partners' short-term leases are sold on a prepaid basis in one-year, 25-hour increments costing between $109,900 and $299,900, depending on the type of aircraft. 

Marquis' nine types of airplanes, ranging from a Cessna Citation V Ultra to a Dassault Falcon 2000 to a Gulfstream IV, are provided by NetJets. That company's founder, Richard Santulli, recently bought singer Celine Dion's home in Admirals Cove, just around the corner from The Ritz-Carlton Club's newest fractional resort being built in Jupiter. 

Marquis' platinum program guarantees planes will be available 365 days a year at thousands of airports in North America and Europe. Another plan offers members unlimited flying time each year for travel to and from Ritz-Carlton Club-area airports. The Ritz-Carlton Club is picking up the first year of the enrollment fee. 

The Ritz-Carlton Club, a division of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co., has fractional resorts in Aspen and Bachelor Gulch, Colo., and in St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Jupiter club is scheduled to open in November with a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course. 

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