Operating costs
Piston aircraft operating costs by model
What a piston airplane costs per hour and per year, owner-flown on 100LL, single and twin-engine.
20 models · median $300 a flight hour at 200 hours a year · CRAFT estimates
Piston aircraft
What sets the cost of piston aircraft
- Owner-flown: no pilot salary, but a visible $0 crew line and a switch to add a hired pilot.
- The engine overhaul reserve is the maker's overhaul price divided by its time between overhauls, per engine, so twins carry two.
- The annual inspection is a fixed cost: a piston airplane pays for it whether it flies 50 hours or 300.
| Class | Models | Median per hour |
|---|---|---|
| Single-engine pistonOwner-flown | 16 | $280 |
| Twin-engine pistonOwner-flown | 4 | $510 |
Calculator
Piston aircraft cost calculator
Piston aircraft operating cost calculator
$
$43,863 per year
$17,305 fixed + $133/hr × 200 hrs ($38/hr of it fuel: 5.1 gal at $7.41). About $219 per flight hour with the fixed costs spread over the hours. Diamond DA20-C1 Eclipse, CRAFT estimate.
Every line of the Diamond DA20-C1 Eclipse estimate, with sources
Every model
Operating cost of every piston aircraft we estimate
20 aircraft. Costs at 200 hours a year, CRAFT estimates.
 Diamond DA20-C1 EclipseOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $220 | $43,905 | 5.1 gal/hr100LL | 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Diamond DA40 NGOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $221 | $44,105 | 5.1 gal/hrJet A | 3 |
 Piper PA-18 Super CubOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $249 | $49,705 | 9 gal/hr100LL | 1 |
 Piper ArcherOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $252 | $50,305 | 9.5 gal/hr100LL | 3 |
 Piper PA-28R ArrowOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $253 | $50,505 | 9.6 gal/hr100LL | n/a |
 Cessna 172 SkyhawkOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $259 | $51,705 | 10.4 gal/hr100LL | 3 |
 Diamond DA50 RGOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $261 | $52,105 | 10.3 gal/hrJet A | 4 |
 Cirrus SR20Owner-flown | Single-engine piston | $282 | $56,305 | 13.5 gal/hr100LL | 3 |
 Piper DakotaOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $286 | $57,105 | 14 gal/hr100LL | n/a |
 Cessna T182T Turbo SkylaneOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $293 | $58,505 | 15 gal/hr100LL | 3 |
 Mooney M20Owner-flown | Single-engine piston | $300 | $59,905 | 15.9 gal/hr100LL | n/a |
 Cirrus SR22Owner-flown | Single-engine piston | $314 | $62,705 | 17.8 gal/hr100LL | 3 |
 GippsAero GA8 AirvanOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $315 | $62,905 | 18 gal/hr100LL | 7 |
 Piper Cherokee SixOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $315 | $62,905 | 18 gal/hr100LL | 5 |
 Piper LanceOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $315 | $62,905 | 18 gal/hr100LL | n/a |
 Cessna 206 StationairOwner-flown | Single-engine piston | $324 | $64,705 | 19.2 gal/hr100LL | 5 |
 Diamond DA42 Twin StarOwner-flown | Twin-engine piston | $440 | $87,970 | 10.4 gal/hrJet A | 3 |
 Diamond DA62Owner-flown | Twin-engine piston | $450 | $89,970 | 11.8 gal/hrJet A | 6 |
 Beechcraft Baron 58Owner-flown | Twin-engine piston | $563 | $112,570 | 27.4 gal/hr100LL | 5 |
 Piper PA-31-350 Navajo ChieftainOwner-flown | Twin-engine piston | $686 | $137,170 | 44 gal/hr100LL | n/a |
17 aircraft we cover but don't estimate yet, and why
- Beechcraft Bonanza G36: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Beechcraft Bonanza V35B: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Beechcraft Duke B60: The only fuel burn we found is an encyclopedia figure, with no maker's or government document behind it that we could check.
- Cessna 207: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Cessna 310: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Cessna 337H Skymaster: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Cessna 340: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Cessna 402C Businessliner: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Cessna 414A Chancellor: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Cessna 421C Golden Eagle: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Cessna TTx: The only fuel burn we found is an encyclopedia figure, with no maker's or government document behind it that we could check.
- Cessna P210N: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Piper PA-28-140 Cherokee: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Piper M350: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Piper PA-44-180 Seminole: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Piper PA-34 Seneca: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
- Piper PA-28-161 Warrior III: No published fuel burn we could cite: the maker's documents we could reach don't state one and no government rate schedule lists it.
Other types: helicopter operating costs, turboprop operating costs, private jet operating costs, regional airliner operating costs, or every aircraft.
Method
How every estimate is built
The same formula for every aircraft: fixed costs a year (crew, training, hangar, insurance, management, inspections) plus a cost per flight hour (fuel, maintenance, engine and parts reserves, fees). Annual cost is fixed costs plus the hourly cost times the hours flown; the hourly figure we quote spreads the fixed costs over 200 hours.
- Fuel: each model's published fuel burn, times one price for every aircraft that burns that fuel: Jet A at $7.66 a gallon and 100LL avgas at $7.41, the U.S. average FBO prices in our fuel price data. A model without a published fuel burn gets no estimate.
- Crew: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics pay plus employer benefits. Piston airplanes, piston helicopters and the owner-flown turboprop singles assume the owner flies: the crew line is $0 and every page has a switch to add a hired pilot.
- Hangar and insurance: published airport hangar schedules, and an aviation insurance broker's published premiums and hull rates, applied to each model's published price where there is one.
- Maintenance and reserves: engine reserves from the maker's time between overhauls and a published overhaul price where one exists; otherwise, and for maintenance, a stated range for the class, midpoint used and shown on every page.
- Not included: the purchase price, financing, depreciation, taxes, upgrades, and any rental or charter income.
Sources
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (released May 15, 2026)
- BLS Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, June 2026 (released September 9, 2026)
- Published airport hangar and tie-down rates (Concord-Padgett Regional, City of Concord NC; Naples Airport Authority FY2026) (read October 15, 2026)
- Published airport hangar rates (Concord-Padgett Regional, City of Concord NC; Naples Airport Authority FY2026; Pierce County WA; Smith Reynolds, Forsyth County NC) (read October 5, 2026)
- BWI Aviation Insurance, "How much is aircraft insurance? A complete 2026 cost breakdown" (January 4, 2026)
- BWI Aviation Insurance, "Helicopter insurance cost" (January 28, 2020)
- Robinson Helicopter Company, Estimated Operating Cost sheets for the R22, R44 Raven II and R66, 2026
- USDA Forest Service, Helicopter Services Hourly Flight Rates, Fuel Consumption, and Weight Reduction Chart (contracts awarded 2013 to 2017, effective February 16, 2019)
- CRAFT jet fuel price data
- CRAFT fuel price data: AirNav Fuel Price Report, national 100LL average
- FAA task orders for recurrent pilot training with FlightSafety International (USAspending.gov) (orders 2024 to 2026)
- Pilatus CrystalCare example calculations (2026 brochures)
- Fuel burn: the maker's published figure (flight manual, spec sheet or operating-cost sheet) or the USDA Forest Service's helicopter fuel consumption chart; engine overhaul intervals from Lycoming, Continental and the airframe makers. Each is listed on the model's page.
We do not use other cost calculators' or brokers' published budgets. Spot something wrong? Tell us.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a piston airplane cost per hour?
In our estimates at 200 hours a year, from $220 an hour (Diamond DA20-C1 Eclipse) to $690 (Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftain), median $300. That counts the fixed costs spread over the hours as well as fuel, maintenance and reserves.
How much does a piston airplane cost a year to own?
The median model costs about $59,000 a year flown 200 hours, before the purchase price, financing and depreciation. Single-engine piston: about $57,000; Twin-engine piston: about $101,000.
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