Buying and operating an Airbus aircraft does not come cheap. But have you ever
been curious about what the hourly cost of flying each of these planes would be?
Here's your guide to the price of flying Airbus models every hour.
Before we jump in, it’s worth noting that data from Aircraft Cost Calculator (ACC)
uses a baseline of 450-650 annual flying hours to break down the hourly cost of each aircraft type.
However, airlines use their planes for far longer every year and with more passengers,
causing a lowering of hourly costs but much higher maintenance costs as well.
The smallest member of the Airbus family is the A318,
seating 110 to 132 passengers in a packed configuration. If flown 650 hours a year,
the plane will cost $3.3 million to operate, coming out at $7,416 per hour. This includes fixed
costs, like the plane itself, and variable costs like crews, jet fuel, and maintenance checks.
While the A318 has seen less popularity with airlines, the same cannot be said about the A319,
which is a mainstay in global fleets. The aircraft can seat anywhere from 125 to 156
passengers in a commercial layout with a range of 4,300 miles. Flying this
plane for a year would cost $3.16 million, coming out to a rate of $7,015 per hour.
The Airbus A320 is one of the most popular narrowbodies in the world, with thousands already
in service and thousands more on order. However, flying one does not come cheap, with a new plane
costing $101 million (spoiler: airlines usually pay much less when ordering large quantities).
The A320 can seat 140 to 180 passengers depending on the configuration,
making it a favorite for airlines. Flying the jet for 450 hours every year would cost
an operator $4.03 million, coming out to a price of $8,958 per hour, according to ACC.
Going slightly larger, the A321-200 can seat between 170
and 220 passengers in the most relaxed or highest configurations.
An annual 450 hours on the A321 would set back operators $4.22 million every year,
or $9,380 per hour. This is a hefty price tag but allows you to fly far with many travelers onboard.
There are more niche versions of the A320 family as well, such as ACJ320neo. Seating
only up to 19 passengers, this jet can fly over 6,000 nautical miles (changes depending
on chosen layout). An annual 450 hours on this private jet comes in at $3 million,
or a (relatively) reasonable $6,689 per hour given how much long-haul flying is possible.
While per hour costs are helpful to understand how much modern jets cost to fly privately,
airlines may have varying costs for their planes. This is down to a number of factors, ranging from
the price of each lease or purchased aircraft, crewing costs, and other variable charges.
These numbers are also closely guarded for obvious reasons,
meaning it is hard to tell how much each airline is truly paying to fly its planes every hour.
How much did you think aircraft cost to fly
per hour? Are you surprised by the data? Let us know in the comments!