Aviation Economics Snapshot

Air Money

How much does the sky cost right now? This tool estimates the total operating cost of visible aircraft in a single ADS-B snapshot. Enter counts manually to see the dollar-per-hour impact of current air activity.

The Money in the Sky

Enter aircraft counts from your ADS-B screenshot. Totals update automatically.

Private & Business Aviation – Costs are estimated Direct Operating Cost (DOC) per hour. Excludes capital costs (purchase/lease). Highly variable based on specific operation.

Aircraft Type Common Name Typical Hourly Cost (USD) Count Segment Total
Gulfstream G650/G700 Gulfstream $6,500 – $8,000 $0
Bombardier Global 7500 Global 7500 $7,500 – $9,000 $0
Dassault Falcon 8X Falcon 8X $6,000 – $7,500 $0
Bombardier Challenger 650 Challenger 650 $3,500 – $4,200 $0
Cessna Citation Longitude Citation Longitude $2,800 – $3,400 $0
Beechcraft King Air 350/360 King Air $1,200 – $1,600 $0
Pilatus PC-12 NG/X PC-12 $900 – $1,200 $0
Daher TBM 940/960 TBM $800 – $1,100 $0
Cessna Caravan 208B Caravan $600 – $900 $0
Cirrus Vision Jet Vision Jet $700 – $900 $0
Private Aviation Total (USD/hr): $0
Costs are industry estimates for fuel, maintenance, crew, and insurance. Can vary by ±30% based on operation.

Cargo & Freight Operations – Costs are estimated total hourly operating cost for typical cargo configuration. Includes fuel, crew, maintenance, and ownership.

Aircraft Type Common Name / Operator Est. Hourly Op Cost (USD) Count Segment Total
Boeing 747-8F 747 Freighter $28,000 – $32,000 $0
Boeing 777F 777 Freighter $22,000 – $26,000 $0
Boeing 767-300F 767 Freighter $15,000 – $18,000 $0
Airbus A330-200F A330 Freighter $16,000 – $19,000 $0
Boeing 757-200F 757 Freighter $9,000 – $11,000 $0
Airbus A321F A321 Freighter $7,500 – $9,500 $0
ATR 72-600F ATR Freighter $3,500 – $4,500 $0
Cessna Caravan 208B Caravan Cargo $600 – $900 $0
Pilatus PC-12 NG PC-12 Cargo $900 – $1,200 $0
Beechcraft 1900 1900 Cargo $1,800 – $2,200 $0
Cargo & Freight Total (USD/hr): $0
Cargo aircraft often fly longer sectors and have different utilization patterns than passenger aircraft.

Military Aircraft (Select Types) – Costs are approximate Cost Per Flight Hour (CPFH) from public sources. Represents fully-burdened life-cycle costs.

Aircraft Type Variant / ID Mission Cost per Hour (USD) Count Segment Total
KC-135 Stratotanker Aerial Refueling $25,000 $0
C-17A Globemaster III Strategic Air Transport $31,000 $0
C-130J Super Hercules Tactical Air Transport $21,000 $0
P-8A Poseidon Maritime Patrol $55,000 $0
T-6A/B Texan II Trainer $2,500 $0
T-38C Talon Trainer $9,000 $0
F-16C/D Fighting Falcon Multi-Role Fighter $26,000 $0
F-35A Lightning II Multi-Role Fighter $44,000 $0
UH-60 Black Hawk Utility Helicopter $8,500 $0
Military Total (USD/hr): $0
CPFH = Cost Per Flight Hour. Most of this cost is fixed (maintenance, salaries) whether the aircraft flies or not.

Important: This tool calculates an estimated aggregate cost based on publicly available hourly operating figures. It does not represent real-time budget burn, marginal spending, or include aircraft not broadcasting on public ADS-B. It's a visibility‑weighted snapshot, not a total economic picture.

How to Read the Data

Choosing a control area and building a baseline for meaningful comparison.

The Analyst's Approach

To move from casual observation to objective analysis, you need to compare the current snapshot against a historical baseline. This means choosing a specific area, checking it at the same time each day, and recording what "normal" looks like.

Major Metro Area

Example: New York City Airspace – Teterboro (TEB), Westchester (HPN), LaGuardia (LGA) approaches.
Why: Pulse of business aviation. Counts of Gulfstreams, Challengers, and Citations reflect corporate travel activity.
Metric: Count of heavy business jets (Global, Gulfstream, Falcon).

Cargo Hub

Example: Memphis (MEM) – FedEx hub, or Louisville (SDF) – UPS hub.
Why: Cargo operations follow predictable daily cycles. Changes reflect shipping volume, holidays, or disruptions.
Metric: Count of 767F, 757F, A300F freighters on approach/departure.

Seasonal Destination

Example: Palm Springs (PSP), Aspen (ASE), Nantucket (ACK).
Why: Private jet traffic spikes on weekends and holidays. A quiet Friday might indicate weather or economic shifts.
Metric: Count of turboprops and midsize jets.

Building Your Baseline

Consistency is everything. For your chosen area:

Fixed Time & Day

Check at the same local time each day. Compare Tuesday to Tuesday, Friday afternoon to Friday afternoon. Weekend patterns differ.

Fixed Tool & View

Use the same platform (e.g., ADSBExchange), same zoom, same filters. Take a screenshot.

Log It

Record: Date/Time, weather, counts by category, notable absences, known events/holidays. Build a spreadsheet.

Key Insight: After 4‑6 weeks, you'll have a statistical range for "normal." Instead of asking "Are there fewer planes today?" you can ask: "Is today's private jet count outside the normal range for a Wednesday at 3 PM?" That's objective analysis.

What This Tool Does (and Doesn't) Tell You

The power and limits of a visibility‑weighted cost snapshot.

The Core Idea

This tool lets you estimate the scale of economic activity in the sky at a given moment. By converting visible aircraft into an aggregate hourly operating cost, you create a single metric that can be tracked over time.

If you establish a baseline for your chosen area, you can then answer:

  • Is there more or less money in the air than usual?
  • Is private, cargo, or military aviation driving the change?
  • Does the pattern match known events, weather, or holidays?

Critical Caveats

Incomplete Data

This table only includes aircraft broadcasting on public ADS‑B/Mode S. It misses:
• Aircraft on secure/restricted codes
• Military aircraft in training areas
• Some corporate jets with blocked tail numbers
It's a visible subset, not a complete picture.

Cost Nuances

Hourly costs are estimates that vary by operator, age, and configuration. Private jet costs exclude capital/lease payments. Cargo costs assume typical utilization. The dollar figure is a proxy for activity level, not precise accounting.

Relative, Not Absolute

The absolute total is less meaningful than its change from your baseline. A drop from $500K/hr to $100K/hr over Teterboro on a Friday afternoon is a significant signal, even if the exact dollar figure isn't perfect.

The Bottom Line: This tool won't tell you why activity is higher or lower. It will tell you that it is different—objectively. From there, you can correlate with weather, news, economic data, or other sources to form hypotheses. That's the value.

NYC Airspace Memphis Cargo Hub Sample Log Sheet