Dry lease vs. charter
If you already fly private, or you're done paying on-demand charter rates, a dry lease gives you the same aircraft and the same experience at a fraction of the cost — with you in operational control. See the difference on your routes.
For the empty-leg hunter
An empty leg goes one way, on the operator's day, from the operator's airport — and it disappears when their schedule changes. A dry lease is the other way to pay less: the same CJ1, both directions, on your dates, with your crew. Run your route below and compare the honest math.
Why dry lease
The same jet and the same door-to-door experience as charter — priced at direct costs instead of a retail rate with the operator's margin baked in, and never at the mercy of fleet availability.
Fly the same class of aircraft for a fraction of on-demand charter rates — you pay direct operating costs, not an operator's margin.
The aircraft is yours for the lease term — no fleet availability, blackout dates, or repositioning fees to work around.
Charter is commercial transportation, so federal excise tax and fees come pre-baked into its price. A lease carries its own, different tax treatment — we'll walk through what applies to your structure with your tax advisor.
Transparent, direct costs you control — no charter markup and no surprise fees.
Estimate your trip
Pick a round-trip route and compare an estimated dry-lease trip on our Citation CJ1 against chartering the same class of jet. Every assumption is editable.
2001 Cessna Citation CJ1 · round trip from South Florida · illustrative estimate
Popular routes
Fuel assumes CAA contract pricing (enrollment in process), typically well below posted FBO retail. Two dry-lease rate options: block ($1,750/hr) if you commit hours up front, or pay-as-you-go ($1,950/hr) — indicative until our jet is finalized. The charter comparison uses a typical light-jet hourly rate plus the 7.5% federal excise tax; real charter quotes usually add landing, handling, and crew fees, so actual savings are typically larger.
◆ Dry lease · with Palm Aero
✈ On-demand charter (est.)
Estimates for illustration only, not a quote. Dry-lease figures assume a trip you operate under Part 91 with your own crew and include the aircraft dry-lease rate, fuel (at CAA contract pricing — enrollment in process), and a pilot day rate; they exclude landing/handling fees, catering, and hangar. The charter estimate uses a typical light-jet hourly rate, a daily-hour minimum, and the 7.5% federal excise tax, and excludes the landing, handling, and crew fees most charters add — so real-world charter is usually higher and your savings larger. Taxes that may apply to the lease itself (such as state sales tax on lease payments) vary by structure and location and aren't included — the gap you see comes from the operator's margin, not the tax line. Actual costs depend on the specific aircraft, route, and terms; plan the tax details with your tax advisor.
We'll send your numbers and follow up with a real, no-pressure quote.
How far can you go
With Tamarack Active Winglets, this CJ1’s cited reach is up to 1,400 nautical miles on a single leg — the entire eastern U.S., Texas, the Bahamas, Mexico, much of the Caribbean, and northern South America (Cartagena, Bogotá, and Medellín), nonstop. The West Coast — and deeper into South America — is just one quick fuel stop away.
Range is manufacturer-cited — Tamarack’s figure for a winglet-equipped CJ1 at max cruise thrust, zero wind — approximate, and varies with winds, payload, and conditions; the winglets are being fitted now and figures will be confirmed on this airframe after installation. Nonstop reach covers the East Coast, Midwest, Texas, the Bahamas, Mexico, the Caribbean, and northern South America (Colombia and Panama) — while the West Coast and cities deeper into South America, such as Lima and Quito, are within reach after a single brief fuel stop (about 30–45 minutes).
Why our jet goes farther
That extra reach on the map isn't a stock CJ1. Our aircraft is being fitted with Tamarack Active Winglets — an FAA- and EASA-certified modification whose load-alleviating wingtips make the very same jet fly farther, climb better, and burn less fuel, with a noticeably smoother ride.
And here's why that matters more on a dry lease than anywhere else: fuel is your direct cost. On a charter, a more efficient jet pads the operator's margin. On this lease, every gallon the winglets save comes off your trip cost.
Figures are manufacturer-cited (Tamarack); installation is underway and final performance will be confirmed on this airframe.
Roughly 300 nm farther than the same jet flat-wing, per Tamarack’s data — more nonstop city pairs, fewer stops.
To 41,000 ft in 32 minutes or less at max takeoff weight — over the weather and straight to efficient cruise.
Active load alleviation cancels turbulence in real time for a steadier, more comfortable cabin.
Less fuel per mile, plus up to 400 lb more useful load — and on a dry lease, the fuel savings are yours.
We make crewing easy
One of the trickiest parts of a dry lease is finding qualified crew. We make it simple while keeping you firmly in control: we can point you to insurance-approved pilots in the area who fly this aircraft type — pilots you hire and pay directly.
Prefer your own pilot? Welcome — as long as they meet the insurance requirements. Either way, the crew is engaged by you, not us. That's what keeps your operation a true dry lease under Part 91 rather than a charter.
We never select, schedule, direct, or pay your crew, and using our suggestions is never required.
Pilot day rates typically run about $1,000–1,500 per day and are paid by you to the pilot.
Tell us your typical routes and group size and we'll put real numbers to it once our jet is set.