Air taxi by private plane in Europe

An air taxi is a short private flight in a small aircraft hired as a whole, for one to eight passengers, between two airports you choose. Most of these flights last 30 to 90 minutes and use regional airfields close to where you are going: Deauville for the Normandy coast, Sion for Verbier and Crans-Montana, Friedrichshafen for Lake Constance. Prices start from EUR 6,500 one way for the whole aircraft.

European Private Jets is a broker and has no aircraft of its own. For each request we compare turboprops and small jets of licensed operators holding an Air Operator Certificate (AOC), check that the aircraft can use both airfields and name the operator in the offer. If an aircraft and crew are available nearby, a short flight can leave about 4 hours after the booking is confirmed.

• • 30-90 min
  • typical flight time
• • 1 to 8
  • passengers per aircraft
• • From EUR 6,500
  • one way, whole aircraft
• • Regional airfields
  • close to the destination
• • About 4 hours
  • from confirmation to take-off
• • 24/7
  • requests accepted and processed

Send the route, the date and the number of passengers, and the manager will reply with a turboprop and a jet option side by side:

What counts as an air taxi

The term has no single legal meaning across Europe. Brokers and operators call a flight an air taxi when it is short, booked on demand and flown by a small aircraft: a turboprop such as the Pilatus PC-12, a very light jet such as the Citation M2 or a light jet such as the Citation CJ3. Contractually it is the same as any private jet charter: you pay for the whole aircraft, set the time and fly only with your own group.

What changes is the scale. A small aircraft costs less per hour than a midsize or heavy jet, needs a shorter runway and is quick to prepare, so it suits a hop of under an hour and a half. "Jet taxi" is the same service in a small jet. Even shorter transfers, and places with no runway at all, are better served by helicopter; the comparison is further down this page.

When an air taxi saves the most time

A short private flight pays off where the alternative is a ferry, a mountain road, a slow cross-border train or an airline connection through a hub. The trips our clients book most often:

• A business day in another country. Meetings in Luxembourg, Budapest or Milan in the morning and home for dinner, without a hotel night. The aircraft waits at the airport while you work.
• Plants and sites away from large airports. Factories around Lake Constance, in the Alpine valleys or in northern Italy are often a short drive from a regional airfield but three or four hours by road from the nearest hub.
• Islands. Jersey, Corsica, Ibiza, Mykonos and Gotland are 40 to 60 minutes from a city airport instead of a ferry crossing. In summer, scheduled seats and car places on the ferries sell out early.
• Weekend houses and resorts. Normandy from Paris, the Baltic island of Usedom from Hamburg, the Valais from Zurich: you leave the office on Friday afternoon and land within the hour.
• Getting to a long-haul flight. A hop from a regional airfield to a large hub in time for an intercontinental departure, when the drive would take half a day.

Air taxi prices on short European routes

Below are one-way prices for the whole aircraft, not per seat, in four aircraft types typical of air taxi work. They apply when the aircraft is based in the region; handling, passenger taxes and, on domestic legs, VAT are added. Where two flight times are given, the first is for the Pilatus PC-12 and the second for the Citation CJ3.

Business routes

With four passengers on board, a PC-12 on these routes works out at about EUR 1,600 to 1,900 per person one way, and a Citation M2 at about EUR 1,900 to 2,100.

Coast, islands and mountain resorts

All the airfields on these routes take every type shown. Sion has a 2,000 m runway at the foot of the Valais resorts, and a helicopter continues to Zermatt in about 15 minutes. For Courchevel and Megève the last leg is also flown by helicopter. On Mykonos and Ibiza, parking for private aircraft is limited in July and August, so book early.

Longer routes and larger jets are on the prices page. For any other pair of airports the calculator gives an estimate:

The result is a guide figure. The manager then checks it against the operator's quote, free of charge and without obligation.

Why a 40-minute flight costs almost as much as an hour

Operators sell flight time by the hour: turboprops from EUR 2,000, very light jets from EUR 2,500 and light jets from EUR 3,200 per flight hour. On a short leg this rate is only part of the bill:

There and back on the same day

A day trip is priced as two legs plus the time the aircraft and crew wait for you, so it is not simply the one-way price twice.

The offer shows the price for your exact timetable. If you stay many hours, we also price sending the aircraft home and bringing it back, and you get whichever costs less.

Aircraft used for air taxi flights

Three classes cover nearly all short private flights in Europe. Seat numbers are for a usual charter layout:

Photos, cabin sizes and seat plans of each model are in the turboprops section of the catalogue and in the jet classes next to it.

Regional airfields an air taxi can use

Air taxis use hundreds of European airfields that airlines serve rarely or not at all. These are some that our clients use often:

Small airfields have their own limits, and we check them before sending the offer:

• Opening hours. Many close in the evening, and some at weekends outside the season. Longer opening can be requested for a fee, but not everywhere.
• Border control and customs. A flight to or from the United Kingdom or Jersey needs border control at both ends. Switzerland is in the Schengen area but outside the EU customs union, so flights between Switzerland and EU countries use airports with customs or customs on request.
• Prior permission. Some airfields accept only aircraft and crews they have approved, or want a request a day or more ahead. La Môle and several mountain airports work this way.
• Weather and lighting. Airfields without an instrument approach or runway lights are used by day and in good visibility. The offer names a nearby alternate airport and the drive from it.

Plane or helicopter

Below about 100 km, or where there is no runway at all, a helicopter is usually faster door to door. Between 100 and 300 km both work, and we price them side by side. Beyond about 300 km a turboprop or light jet is faster and usually cheaper.

The two also work together: a plane to Geneva, Chambéry or Nice and a helicopter for the last stretch to the resort, the villa or the harbour where the yacht waits, booked under one contract. Routes, landing sites and hourly rates are on the helicopter rental page.

Paying less for a short flight

How an air taxi flight is arranged

1. RequestSend the route, the date, the times you prefer, the number of passengers and any bulky luggage. For a day trip, give the time you need to be back.
2. OffersYou receive two or three offers, as a rule a turboprop and a jet, each with the operator's name, the airfields, the flight times and the full price with taxes.
3. ChecksBefore you confirm, we check opening hours, border control, permission to land and the alternate airport at both ends.
4. Contract and paymentYou sign the contract remotely and pay; the operator then files the flight plan and books the handling.
5. Flight dayCome to the business aviation terminal or the general aviation building 20-30 minutes before departure with your passport or ID card. At small airfields you often walk straight to the aircraft.

You can pay by bank transfer or card, and in cryptocurrency, mainly USDT and USDC; the options are on the payment page. Cancellation terms are set in the contract and in our terms and conditions. For a flight on the same day, call +357 96407410, write on WhatsApp to +49 157 33565927 or leave your number:

Questions about air taxi flights

• • What is the difference between an air taxi and a private jet charter?

  • In the contract there is none: in both cases you hire the whole aircraft from a licensed operator. "Air taxi" usually means a short flight of up to about 90 minutes in a turboprop or a small jet, while a charter also covers midsize and long-range jets on longer routes.

• • How much does an air taxi cost in Europe?

  • A one-way hop of 40 to 75 minutes costs from EUR 6,500 in a Pilatus PC-12 and from EUR 7,500 in a Citation M2 or CJ3, for the whole aircraft. Handling and passenger taxes are added and depend on the country.

• • Is a 30-minute flight much cheaper than a one-hour flight?

  • Not much. Operators usually bill about one flight hour as a minimum per leg, and landing and handling fees are the same whatever the distance. The real saving comes from an aircraft based close to your departure airport.

• • How many passengers and how much luggage can an air taxi take?

  • A very light jet takes four to six passengers with one soft bag each; a PC-12 or a light jet takes six to eight with weekend luggage. Skis, golf bags and large suitcases fit best in the PC-12 and the PC-24, which have a large cargo door.

• • Can a single-engine PC-12 fly at night or in cloud?

  • Yes, if the operator holds the European approval for commercial passenger flights with single-engine turboprops in these conditions. We check it for every offer; without it the flight is planned by day and in good visibility.

• • How long can the aircraft wait for me at the destination?

  • On a day trip, as long as the crew duty day allows: at most 13 hours from the moment the crew reports for duty, and less with an early start or several landings. For a longer stay we compare keeping the aircraft there with sending it home and bringing it back.

• • Can an air taxi land at any small airfield?

  • Only where the runway is long enough for the aircraft type, the airfield accepts commercial flights and it is open at your time. Some airfields, such as La Môle near Saint-Tropez, accept only aircraft and crews they have approved in advance.

• • Can I fly from a small airfield to the UK or Jersey?

  • Yes, if both airfields provide border control, because the United Kingdom and Jersey are outside the Schengen area. Passengers need a passport, and most visitors to the UK also need an electronic travel authorisation (ETA); we check the rules for each nationality.

• • When is a helicopter better than a plane?

  • For distances under about 100 km and for landing places without a runway, such as Monaco, Zermatt or a hotel lawn. From about 300 km a turboprop or light jet is faster and usually cheaper.

• • Can I book a single seat on an air taxi?

  • An air taxi is hired as a whole aircraft. A single seat is possible only on a shared flight formed by other passengers on the same route and date, which is how Jet Sharing works.