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Aircraft guide
Hourly rates roughly double from a light jet to a large cabin. Choosing the smallest aircraft that carries your group and bags comfortably, for the distance you are flying, does more for the price than anything else.
Short hops
Pilatus PC-12 and King Air 350 class. Turboprops cruise slower than jets, roughly 30 percent longer on the same route, but they use shorter runways and cost the least per hour. For an island hop or a 45-minute trip to the coast, the time difference barely registers.
Two to four people
HondaJet and Citation M2 class. Jet speed for small groups on trips of up to about two and a half hours. The cabin is compact, about 4.8 feet tall, and luggage space is limited, so pack soft bags.
The value pick
Phenom 300E, Citation CJ4 and Learjet 75 class. The most requested category for trips up to about three hours: New York to Palm Beach, Los Angeles to Las Vegas, London to Ibiza. Six to eight seats make the cost per seat attractive for a full group.
More cabin, more bags
Citation XLS+ class. About 5.7 feet of cabin height and a larger baggage hold. Worth the step up for four hours in the air, or when golf bags and skis are coming along.
Coast to coast
Challenger 350, Citation Longitude and Praetor 600 class. A six-foot cabin and enough range for most transcontinental trips nonstop. On a long flight, a nonstop super-midsize can cost less than a smaller jet that has to stop for fuel.
Big groups, long flights
Gulfstream G450, Challenger 650 and Falcon 2000LXS class. Stand-up cabins of 6 to 6.2 feet, separate seating areas and the range for the Atlantic. Split among a group of ten or more, the cost per seat can be closer to a smaller jet than you might think.
Intercontinental
Gulfstream G650ER and Global 7500 class. Nonstop between continents with full crew rest. Rarely the budget choice, but for a large group on a very long trip it can be the only aircraft that avoids a fuel stop.
Side by side
Typical figures for each class. Individual aircraft vary with age, configuration and the operator.
| Category | Example aircraft | Seats | Typical range | Cabin height | Hourly estimate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turboprop | PC-12, King Air 350 | 6–9 | ~1,800 nm | ~4.8 ft | $1,800–3,200 |
| Very light jet | HondaJet, Citation M2 | 4–5 | 1,400–1,550 nm | ~4.8 ft | $2,800–4,200 |
| Light jet | Phenom 300E, Citation CJ4, Learjet 75 | 6–8 | 2,000–2,150 nm | 4.8–4.9 ft | $3,500–5,500 |
| Midsize | Citation XLS+ | 7–9 | ~2,100 nm | ~5.7 ft | $4,500–7,000 |
| Super-midsize | Challenger 350, Citation Longitude, Praetor 600 | 8–10 | 3,200–4,000 nm | ~6.0 ft | $6,500–9,500 |
| Large cabin | G450, Challenger 650, Falcon 2000LXS | 10–16 | 4,000–4,300 nm | 6.0–6.2 ft | $8,500–13,000 |
| Ultra long range | G650ER, Global 7500 | 13–19 | 7,500–7,700 nm | 6.2 ft+ | $12,000–20,000+ |
The hourly figure is a starting point, not a price. A real quote adds the 7.5% federal excise tax on domestic flights, a small per-passenger segment fee, and any repositioning: the hours the aircraft flies empty to reach you or to get home. Daily minimums, often one to two billed hours a day, matter on short trips and multi-day stays. Crew overnights, landing and handling fees, winter de-icing, catering and Wi-Fi can apply too.
We look for an aircraft already based near your departure airport, so repositioning hours stay small, and for empty legs heading your way. We quote the smallest category that carries your group and bags comfortably. Every quote we send is all-in, so you can compare options on the number that matters. Try the budget planner or request a quote.