Next Airplane

Having sold N620CP, our trusty Piper Archer, last spring, it is time to fantasize about the next airplane.

For the time being, thanks to lack of time and relatively tight finances, I'm in an enforced period of no flying. But that shouldn't be the case forever.

Among light planes today, the one I'm most impressed with is the Cirrus SR-20 and SR-22 (I'm not alone in this--Cirrus has gone from zero to now being the largest airplane manufacturer in the world, based on the number of aircraft sold per year). Unfortunately, these are both four-seat planes. Too small to accommodate our growing family with three kids.

So a more likely choice is a Cessna 206, which is the airborne equivalent of a minivan or SUV: big, ugly, practical, and carries a ton.

I'm not too thrilled with the 206, though. I've test flown one, and it flies like a dump truck. It is also an old design, and doesn't take advantage of the advances in airframe and engine technology since the 1960's.

But as long as we're dreaming, there's the Pilatus PC-12. This turbine-powered monster cruises in the flight levels, has a cabin of the size you find on some business jets, and can easily carry a family of five with three big teenagers (which is what the kids will someday become). Fairly economical, as such things go, at a little under $3 million. The PC-12 also looks cool, unlike the Cessna.

My ultimate plane, though, is the Cessna Citation X. This business jet is the fastest civilian aircraft in the skies (now that Concorde is permanently grounded), clocking in at mach 0.92. Flying a Citation X is not only more convenient than an airline, you'll outrun them, too. The Citation X looks like nothing else in the skies, with oversized engines, sharply swept wings, and sculpted contours (necessary to manage the transonic airflow at cruise speeds). No aluminum-tube-with-wings here. All this can be mine (or yours) for a cool $20 million or so.

Pardon me while I wipe the drool off my keyboard.

Will I ever be able to afford my dream plane? What would it take to put me in the cockpit of that lovely Citation which I know has my name on it?

One rule of thumb is that any airplane will cost about 10% of the (new) purchase price each year for maintenance and upkeep. So the Pilatus would set me back around a quarter-mil each year to keep it oiled and shiny, while the Citation would require feeding to the tune of around $2 million/year (some of that money goes to fancy simulator-based training for the pilot--me--which is essential for such a high performance craft).

Another consideration is that I don't want my baby to be my only asset. That means that before I can realistically afford a particular airplane, my liquid net worth and income should be some multiple of the cost of the plane. Call it a factor of 10.

At a rough estimate, the operating expenses and loan payments for an airplane will be somewhere in the range of 20% to 30% of the purchase price each year. That means that I need an annual income of 200% to 300% of the price of the airplane to be able to justify it to She Who Puts Up With Me. So when I'm earning $50 million per year, the Citation will be mine.

Or, if I come into a great sum of money (say, by selling my company to Google) and pay cash, I need to have a liquid net worth of 10x the purchase price of the plane (income from investments should cover the operating expenses at that point). If I can get to $200 million, I'm there.

Now let's see....how many clients do we need to sign up to earn $50 million/year?