Retail

Flight records for Jeff Bezos' $65 million private jet could reveal a clue about Amazon's mysterious 2nd headquarters

Jeff Bezos
Jeff Bezos' private jet frequents the Washington, DC, area. Isaiah Downing/Reuters
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  • Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' private jet has flown to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, more than any other destination aside from its home base in Seattle, according to records obtained by the Puget Sound Business Journal
  • Northern Virginia and the nearby Washington, DC, and Montgomery County, Maryland, are among 20 finalists in Amazon's search for the home of its new headquarters. 
  • In a statement to Fox Business, Amazon said, "There's no connection between Jeff's personal and business travel, and our HQ2 search."

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos' private jet could provide a clue as to where the tech company will build its second headquarters.

Since March 2016, the Gulfstream G650ER has visited only one destination more often than its home base of Seattle — and that's Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, according to records obtained by the Puget Sound Business Journal

Northern Virginia and the nearby Washington, DC, and Montgomery County, Maryland are among 20 finalists in Amazon's search for the home of its new headquarters, known as HQ2. 

The flight records don't identify the jet's passengers or the nature of the trips. It's possible that Amazon executives other than Bezos have been aboard the aircraft, which is worth an estimated $65 million and seats eight people, during its trips to DC. 

There are, of course, reasons unrelated to Amazon that could draw Bezos to the nation's capital.

The area is home to a $23 million mansion that Bezos purchased last year and the nearby offices of The Washington Post, which Bezos bought five years ago for $250 million.

In a statement to Fox Business, Amazon said, "There's no connection between Jeff's personal and business travel, and our HQ2 search."

Airports near HQ2 finalists that the jet has visited this year also include Colorado's Boulder Municipal Airport; Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport; Hollywood Burbank and Los Angeles International in Los Angeles; and New Jersey's Teterboro Airport, according to the Puget Sound Business Journal. 

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Hayley Peterson
Hayley Peterson
Hayley Peterson is an Executive Editor who oversees coverage of the economy, tech, media, advertising, defense, careers, and more.She was previously a chief correspondent at Business Insider and wrote breaking news, analysis, and in-depth investigations on large consumer companies, with an emphasis on retailers including Amazon, Walmart, major grocery chains, and department stores.Hayley won recognition from the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing in 2018 for "defining the retail apocalypse" through her reporting on retail job losses, the decline of Sears, and the impact of store closings on bondholders.Prior to joining Business Insider in 2013, Hayley was a White House correspondent and embedded on the presidential 2012 campaign trail.