AS55Medium Turbine HelicopterCurated data · 2026-06The AS355 Twin Squirrel, known in Brazil as the twin-engine Esquilo, is a light two-engine helicopter built between 1981 and 2008 by the lineage that now belongs to Airbus Helicopters.
Full operating cost, variable vs fixed mix and a line by line breakdown: the math that decides the purchase.
Starter feature. Available on your Jet Tracker account.
Jet Tracker estimate: about US$ 2,681 per flight hour at 400 h/year, of which US$ 1,761 per hour is variable cost (fuel, engine program, maintenance reserves, fees) plus US$ 368,100 per year of fixed cost (crew, hangar, insurance, training).
About US$ 1,072,500 per year (roughly R$ 5,353,062 at today's exchange rate), of which 66% is variable cost (depends on hours flown) and 34% is fixed cost (exists even with the aircraft parked).
About US$ 372 per flight hour, at the US$ 6.20 per gallon used in this simulation (reference price, not today's quote). Fuel is usually the largest variable cost item.
About US$ 22.16 per nautical mile, at a cruise speed of 121 kt. It is the right metric to compare aircraft of different speeds on the same route.
Variable cost only exists when the aircraft flies: fuel, engine program, hourly maintenance reserves and landing fees. Fixed cost exists even with the aircraft in the hangar: crew, hangarage, insurance, training and subscriptions. That is why total cost per hour falls the more hours per year the aircraft flies.
Estimates from the Jet Tracker cost engine under the assumptions shown in the calculator. They do not replace a quote from an operator, MRO or insurer.
| Variable | Fuel | US$ 494.99 | US$ 197,996 |
| Variable | Engine program | US$ 456.00 | US$ 182,400 |
| Variable | Airframe reserve | US$ 780.00 | US$ 312,000 |
| Variable | APU reserve | US$ 30.00 | US$ 12,000 |
| Variable | Landing / handling | US$ 33.00 | US$ 13,200 |
| Variable | Miscellaneous | US$ 90.00 | US$ 36,000 |
| Fixed | Hangarage | US$ 90.00 | US$ 36,000 |
| Fixed | Hull insurance | US$ 26.00 | US$ 10,400 |
| Fixed | Liability insurance | US$ 45.00 | US$ 18,000 |
| Fixed | Crew (PIC) | US$ 325.00 | US$ 130,000 |
| Fixed | Crew (SIC) | US$ 187.50 | US$ 75,000 |
| Fixed | Crew (benefits) | US$ 153.75 | US$ 61,500 |
| Fixed | Training | US$ 70.00 | US$ 28,000 |
| Fixed | Subscriptions | US$ 15.00 | US$ 6,000 |
| Fixed | Modernization reserve | US$ 8.00 | US$ 3,200 |