Is There a Rental Price/Performance Comparison Tool?

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FL Pilot

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FL Pilot
Does anyone know of a tool with a database of aircraft performance numbers where I can enter a route and compare the total cost and performance of renting one type vs. another?

For example, if I intend to fly a round trip between ABC and XYC, I'd like to see what the performance and cost differences would be if choosing to rent an Archer for $160 hr/wet vs. a C182 for $250 hr/wet.

Thanks.
 
Not aware of any tools or databases like that, they tend to get complicated fast.

Pretty easy to look up Cruise speed and determine how many hours required in each plane.
That shows you how much faster the 182 is and how much cheaper the Archer is, at the prices you listed.
At those prices I think the Archer is an easy win for costing less.

But then it gets complicated when you start looking at fuel capacity and useful load.

The 182 may start to get more economical if it doesn't require fuel stop(s) due to the higher useful load.

Brian
 
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For anything less than about 300 miles, your block-to-block hours time differences aren't going to be that great between and Archer and a 182, when you're paying by Hobbs time. That cost differential is huge, as presented. A couple minutes with a calculator, pen and envelope you should be able to figure it out. A good Archer with wheel pants will cruise low to mid 120 kts. A 182 with wheel pants will cruise about 135 kts. The fuel burn difference between the two is about 3 gph in cruise (+$18-21/hr range). The 182 will obviously carry more, if needed.
 
A few years ago when I was in a flying club I did that exercise. There were three airplanes I was considering - a 172, a 182, and a Saratoga (fixed gear, turbo). That club rented dry Hobbs time. I set up a spreadsheet for the trip I was planning, and entered flight time, fuel burn, fuel cost, and rental cost. The faster airplanes burned more fuel, but got there faster, so used fewer hours, but the hours were more expensive, so it was a bit complicated but not too bad.

The big surprise to me was that with the pricing they had, it didn't really matter which airplane I took - the total costs were all within just a very small range - literally like small double-digit dollars. Might have been $20-50. So I took the fastest one, of course.
 
FL Pilot said:
I'd like to see what the performance and cost differences would be if choosing to rent an Archer for $160 hr/wet vs. a C182 for $250 hr/wet.
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An Archer and a 182 aren’t *that* different speed wise for almost an extra $100/hr. They’re roughly 10-12kts different, which only translates into a difference of a couples minutes of flight time.
 
Yes, you could save TENS of dollars. It is a wonder nobody has built this tool to save what amounts to couch change in our hobby.
 
RyanB said:
An Archer and a 182 aren’t *that* different speed wise for almost an extra $100/hr. They’re roughly 10-12kts different, which only translates into a difference of a couples minutes of flight time.
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One area where the 182 outshines a 172 is climb rate though, so if you need to get above 7,000' or so, the 182 is going to get you to altitude a lot faster.

At that price differential, that 182 ought to be pretty mint, with modern avionics. Either that or someone is trying to pay off a big bank note on it.
 
It's been a while since I rented a plane so I checked on my local flight schools website to see rental prices.:eek:

An old 172 is going for $171 wet. A 2008 G1000 172 is $173. That math is easy. Here is where it gets interesting...

They have a 210 as well. That is $221 and hour. They also have a PA28 for $140.

Using a 300nm trip (at full rental power) as an example this is what I came up with:

  • Cessna 172 - $432.50 @ 2.5 hours
  • Cessna 210 - $390.00 @ 1.7 hours
  • PA28 - $381.00 @ 2.7 hours
As you can see the most expensive plane is actually the best value overall.

Conversely, in my C310Q, the DOC for that flight would be about $428.00 and in my AA5 it would be $216.
 
brcase said:
The 182 may start to get more economical if it doesn't require fuel stop(s) due to the higher useful load.

Brian
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Especially if it allows you to have fewer fuel stops, AND allows you to pass up higher priced fuel for cheaper fuel.
 
k9medic said:
It's been a while since I rented a plane so I checked on my local flight schools website to see rental prices.:eek:

An old 172 is going for $171 wet. A 2008 G1000 172 is $173. That math is easy. Here is where it gets interesting...

They have a 210 as well. That is $221 and hour. They also have a PA28 for $140.

Using a 300nm trip (at full rental power) as an example this is what I came up with:

  • Cessna 172 - $432.50 @ 2.5 hours
  • Cessna 210 - $390.00 @ 1.7 hours
  • PA28 - $381.00 @ 2.7 hours
As you can see the most expensive plane is actually the best value overall.

Conversely, in my C310Q, the DOC for that flight would be about $428.00 and in my AA5 it would be $216.
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For a single trip, I would say that the $50 difference is irrelevant. Just about the only advantage of renting over owning a plane is the freedom to pick the airplane you would like to fly for the mood of the day. On the other hand, if renting for 100 hours a year, the difference between the cheapest and the most expensive adds up, and the choice becomes $14,000 vs $22,100. In other words, the 210 is a 'luxury' that costs $8,100 per year more. I would say there is little point in budgeting for the single trip (just get the plane you like, when a special trip comes up), but it is surely worth keeping an eye on the long term expenses, because they do add up.
 
I don’t think anybody has ever said “owning an airplane is a wise financial decision.“. Lol.

If I work to calculate my fixed cost associated with the two airplanes that I own I would never own an airplane.

Right now i’m getting ready to head out to the airport to replace the battery on my AA5 that decided to go bad yesterday.

This is on top of the replacement spinner cost that I had for my 310 due to a crack that was found on Monday.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
A 210 for rent? That is rare. Wonder what the insurance requirements are, or if the renter needs to "bring their own".
 
Salty said:
No offense, but I’m struggling to figure out how one could read that without taking offense. Lol
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a little off-topic. I had an HOA board member that had a nasty habit of saying: “with all due respect” following it with the most disrespectful statement(s) possible. It became problematic for him.
 
Jeff Oslick said:
A 210 for rent? That is rare. Wonder what the insurance requirements are, or if the renter needs to "bring their own".
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You have to have renters insurance to rent there. Last I heard, it was 10 hours and a checkout plus an instrument rating for the 210.
 
Rgbeard said:
a little off-topic. I had an HOA board member that had a nasty habit of saying: “with all due respect” following it with the most disrespectful statement(s) possible. It became problematic for him.
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With all due respect, before they disrespect and insult you… What a smoke screen that is.
 
You are making this too difficult.

Unlike rental cars, you never get the free upgrade on a aircraft rental. But just like rental cars, if you pay for an upgrade it is always more expensive.
 
Something else to factor in is daily minimums. Sometimes it’s easier to figure the cost of the trip as hourly rate times the daily minimum and then figure how far away you can go. The other thing to factor is that at most of the places I rented from, I could get relief from the daily minimums when I flew the more expensive planes.
 
RyanB said:
With all due respect, before they disrespect and insult you… What a smoke screen that is.
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Ricky Bobby made it clear. As long as you say “With all due respect” you can say whatever you want.
 
TommyG said:
Ricky Bobby made it clear. As long as you say “With all due respect” you can say whatever you want.
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Sometimes I let my "work speak" carry over into non-work areas...and I've had to adjust my "work speak" several times, as people become less tolerant of my background. Things like "what special kind of idiot designed this?" or "where were the adults when this happened?" aren't appropriate when talking with vendors. I'm just being mean then, and they stop listening. The patience required in dealing with contractors can be tiring at times.
 
Albany Tom said:
Sometimes I let my "work speak" carry over into non-work areas...and I've had to adjust my "work speak" several times, as people become less tolerant of my background. Things like "what special kind of idiot designed this?" or "where were the adults when this happened?" aren't appropriate when talking with vendors. I'm just being mean then, and they stop listening. The patience required in dealing with contractors can be tiring at times.
Click to expand...

That is a lot of deep thought to reply about a Ricky Bobby quote.
 
Jeff Oslick said:
A 210 for rent? That is rare. Wonder what the insurance requirements are, or if the renter needs to "bring their own".
Click to expand...

Last place I know of that had a 210 required IR + commercial, 500hrs and 50hrs retrac. It was a leaseback and the owner preferred to sell it in 10-hr blocks.
 
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