Fractional Analysis — model the real cost of a fractional jet share over five years

The question it answers

What will a fractional share actually cost me — every year, and per hour?

Fractional ownership is one of the biggest commitments in private aviation. The headline hourly rate is only part of the story. There’s the capital you put down for the share, a monthly management fee, variable costs every time you fly, depreciation on the aircraft, and inflation over the life of the contract. Most buyers never see all of it in one place.

Fractional Analysis models the entire program on a five-year cash flow basis, so you see the real cost before you commit.

What you put in

• Operator and aircraft type — choose the fractional program you want to model
• Share size — the number of hours per year you’d buy into
• Utilization — how much of your allotment you expect to fly
• Scenario settings — such as CPI for cost escalation

What you get

The full program, in one view

For each program, FlightWiseOS shows:

• Estimated share acquisition price — the capital you put down for the aircraft share
• Monthly management fee
• Variable costs — the occupied hourly rate, fuel, and taxes
• Annual hour allotment

A five-year cash flow

The model projects the program from year one to year five:

• Projected annual operating cost for the hours you buy
• Depreciation each year, and in total
• Total operating expense over the term
• Net fractional cost — what the share really costs once its remaining value is counted

Two hourly rates

• Non-depreciated hourly rate — what you pay to fly and manage the share, per hour
• Depreciated hourly rate — the same, plus the loss in the share’s value spread across your hours

The second number is the one most buyers never see, and it’s often the one that matters most.

Utilization scenarios

Fixed costs don’t shrink when you fly less. Adjust utilization to see what happens to your rate. For example: if you only fly 90 percent of your hours, how much does your effective hourly rate rise? Model more hours or fewer, and see the effect immediately.

Inflation and scenarios

Apply CPI to escalate costs over the five years, and compare scenarios side by side. You can see what you should expect to spend each year under different assumptions, not just in year one.

Explore the fleets behind the programs

Fractional Analysis also lets you explore the fractional fleets and aircraft types on offer: which operators run fractional programs, what aircraft they fly, and how their fleets compare. See US and regional fleets for deeper fleet profiles.

The same module can also model the cost of owning a whole aircraft year by year, so you can weigh a share against full ownership. See Ownership cost.

Use it with Program Comparison

Fractional shares and jet cards solve different problems. Use Program Comparison alongside the fractional model to see what each option gives you: the flexibility of a card or membership, or the guaranteed access and asset of a share.

The Route Estimator shows how a fractional program would price your actual routes, next to On-Demand charter and other programs.

An example

A company flies about 100 hours a year and is considering a fractional share in a super midsize jet. In Fractional Analysis, they model two operators’ programs at 100 hours.

The five-year view shows each program’s acquisition price, management fees, and hourly costs, with projected annual operating cost and total depreciation. The depreciated hourly rate is well above the advertised hourly rate for both. They then model 90 percent utilization, since their flying varies, and see how much their effective rate rises. With CPI applied, they can see year-five costs alongside year one. They save the stronger program to their Preferred List and ask their aviation manager to set up a call.

Who it’s for

• Executives, families, and family offices considering a fractional share
• CFOs and finance teams who need the full five-year cost, not just an hourly rate
• Current owners checking whether their share still fits how much they fly

Fractional Analysis is part of every FlightWiseOS plan, starting with Access. Save programs to your Preferred List, learn how fractional ownership works, or read the Market Intelligence overview.