Business jet cost per flight hour: table by model

What goes into the cost per flight hour?

The market works with three measures, and confusing one with another is the most common mistake.

• Variable cost per hour. What only exists when the engine is running: fuel, airframe and engine maintenance reserves, landing, navigation and handling fees, catering and crew per diems. It is the most comparable number across models.
• Total cost per hour. Adds to the variable the year's fixed costs (crew, hangar, insurance, training, management) divided by the hours flown. The math is: total per hour = variable + fixed ÷ hours. That is why the same aircraft costs more per hour for someone who flies little.
• Charter price. What an operator charges for the flight. It includes aircraft positioning, margin and taxes, and is quoted per leg. Jet Tracker has no established charter rate by model, so this article does not publish a charter range.

The fixed costs and the makeup of each item are detailed in how much does it cost to keep a business jet. The hour-by-hour math for a single model is in Phenom 300 operating cost per hour.

What is the cost per hour of each model? (table)

The table ranks eleven models from lowest to highest total cost per hour at 400 hours a year, the engine's default assumption. The 200-hour column shows the effect of flying less.

Source: Jet Tracker, canonical cost engine (version canonical-2026-09), estimate, queried Oct 12, 2026. The 200-hour totals are calculated with the math above.

A few readings from the table:

• The PC-12 has the lowest cost per hour. A single-engine turbine, $1,119 variable. Among the jets (turbofan), the lowest is the HondaJet, with $1,482 variable and $2,147 total at 400 hours.
• The three very light jets sit together. The HondaJet, Phenom 100 and Citation M2 differ by less than $400 per hour in total at 400 hours. The choice among them comes down more to cabin, range and maintenance network than to cost.
• The jump from light jet to super-midsize is large. The Praetor 600 costs 1.6 times the variable of the Phenom 300 ($3,636 against $2,267) and 1.7 times the total at 400 hours ($5,741 against $3,357). A good part of the jump is in the fixed cost: the Praetor 600's is almost double ($842K per year against $436K).
• Fixed cost is what separates similar models. The Learjet 75 has the same annual fixed cost as the Phenom 300 (about $436K) and a variable cost 25% higher.

Cost per hour or per mile: which to compare?

For models with similar speed, cost per hour is enough. When one is a turboprop and the other a jet, cost per nautical mile tells a fairer story. The table divides the variable cost per hour by the catalog cruise speed. It is an approximation: it does not account for climb, descent, holding or wind.

Source: Jet Tracker, model catalog (cruise speed) and canonical cost engine (version canonical-2026-09), estimate, queried Oct 12, 2026. The clearest inversion is the King Air 350: it costs 11% less per hour than the Phenom 300 ($2,021 against $2,267), but 30% more per mile ($6.48 against $5.00), because it flies at 312 knots against 453. The cabin is also different: the catalog shows 8 typical seats on the King Air and 7 on the Phenom 300. For a side-by-side comparison of models, use the comparison tool.

Why does flying more bring the cost per hour down?

The variable cost barely changes with use: fuel and reserves cost the same per flight hour. What changes is the fixed cost per hour. On the Phenom 300, the $436,250 of fixed cost per year becomes $2,181 per hour at 200 hours and $1,091 at 400. That is why the total per hour rises from $3,357 to $4,448, about 32% more, just from flying half as much. Across the eleven models in the table, the effect runs from 24% (Phenom 100) to 37% (Praetor 600).

To decide between buying, fractional or charter, the total hour weighs more than the variable. The cost-of-keeping guide brings the comparison of the four ways to use a jet, and the cost calculator lets you change the hours per year and the crew, hangar and insurance assumptions.

Why does the cost change from one operator to another?

Two identical aircraft, in the same week, can have different costs. The main reasons:

• Engine program. Inside a per-hour program, the reserve is a contractual rate. Outside it, the operator provisions the overhaul on its own, and the estimate rarely matches. In Jet Tracker's catalog, for example, the engine overhaul reserve for the King Air 350 is $440 per hour on the aircraft (Guardian Jet, consulted Oct 2026), a reference figure and not a contract rate.
• Fuel. The price of jet fuel varies by airport and by contract. The engine uses a default price, and the difference against your contract changes the variable cost.
• Exchange rate. Fuel, parts, programs and insurance are priced in dollars, while the revenue of those operating in Brazil is usually in reais. The figures here are in dollars and were not converted, because Jet Tracker does not adopt a reference exchange rate for these articles.
• Age and maintenance condition. Older aircraft consume more unscheduled maintenance, and a large inspection coming up distorts the math if it is spread over the short term.
• Mission profile. Short legs cost more per hour than long cruises, because takeoff weighs more on fuel, engines and brakes.

How much does a typical mission in Brazil cost?

For a specific route, Jet Tracker calculates the variable cost of the leg from the distance and the block time. For São Paulo (Congonhas) to Brasília, one way, it is 471 nautical miles (872 km):

Source: Jet Tracker, leg calculator (canonical cost engine, version canonical-2026-09), estimate, queried Oct 12, 2026. The Phenom 100 takes 14 minutes longer and still comes out about 8% cheaper on the leg, because the variable cost per hour is lower. This is the cost of operating the aircraft on the flight, without fixed costs, depreciation or positioning. It is not a charter price: an operator quotes the leg including the empty flight to the origin, the margin and the taxes.