Aircraft GuidesHow Aircraft Range Works
Why the brochure number isn't the whole story, headwinds, payloads, and reserves explained simply.
"This jet has 6,000 kilometers of range, why can't it fly my 5,800-kilometer route nonstop?" It's one of the best questions clients ask, usually delivered with justified suspicion, and the answer makes you a permanently sharper charter buyer.
The short version: published range is a laboratory number, and your Tuesday is not a laboratory. Wind, weight, weather reserves, and speed all take their share before the aircraft ever taxis.
Here's how the arithmetic really works, and the simple margin rule that keeps our flight planners out of trouble.
In This Article
1. What the Published Number Means
Brochure range assumes ideal conditions: typically four passengers, calm winds, optimal altitudes, and the most economical cruise speed the aircraft offers. It exists as a standardized benchmark for comparing aircraft, useful precisely because every manufacturer computes it the same generous way.
Treat it like a car's laboratory fuel economy: honest under its own rules, and reliably optimistic about your actual journey.
2. The Four Range Thieves
Between the brochure and your flight plan, four factors take their cut:
Headwinds
Winter Atlantic westbounds can cost 10%+ of effective range.
Full Cabins
More passengers and bags mean more weight, less fuel.
Reserves
Legal alternates and holding fuel are non-negotiable.
Speed
Flying fast burns range; long sectors cruise economically.
