Guide

Putting your jet on a charter certificate: what changes

Updated 2026-08-15

Owners are usually sold this as a revenue line. It is better understood as a change of regulatory status that happens to produce revenue.

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Question 1

How many hours a year will you fly privately?

Count only the flying you would actually do. The most common planning error is budgeting for the flying you aspire to rather than last year's diary.

The line the regulation draws

14 CFR 119.1 applies to each person operating or intending to operate civil aircraft as an air carrier or commercial operator in air commerce.

It also covers US-registered aeroplanes under 20 passenger seats and 6,000 pounds payload, in noncommon carriage (except as in 91.501(b)) or private carriage for compensation or hire. Part 119 prescribes the certification needed for operations under part 121, 125 or 135.

In practice, an owned aircraft offered for third-party charter is added to a certificated operator's operations specifications. It flies as a part 135 aircraft on those trips, under that operator's manuals, maintenance programme and crew requirements.

What you give up

Operational control on charter flights sits with the certificate holder, not with you. That is the point of certification and it is not negotiable by contract.
Schedule priority. Owner trips at short notice can collide with a booked charter, and how that is resolved is a term in your management agreement worth reading very carefully.
Airframe hours and cycles accumulate on somebody else's flying, which affects maintenance timing and your resale position.
Maintenance and inspection requirements change: commercial operation brings the operator's programme, which is generally more demanding than a private one.
Insurance: commercial use is a different risk and is priced as one. Get the quote before you commit, not after.

The part 91 arrangements that are not charter

14 CFR 91.501(b) lists operations that may be conducted under part 91 subpart F instead of parts 121, 129, 135 and 137 when common carriage is not involved. These are frequently confused with charter and they are not the same thing.

Part 91 arrangements, as defined in 14 CFR 91.501(c)
Arrangement	What it is	What may be charged
Time sharing	A person leases their airplane with flight crew to another person	Only the expenses listed in 91.501(d)
Interchange	A person leases their airplane in exchange for equal time on another person's airplane when needed	No charge except one not exceeding the difference between the cost of owning, operating and maintaining the two airplanes
Joint ownership	One registered joint owner employs and furnishes the flight crew; each joint owner pays a share of the charge specified in the agreement	The share specified in the agreement
Company carriage	Officials, employees, guests and property of a company, within the scope of and incidental to the company's business	No charge in excess of the cost of owning, operating and maintaining the airplane, and no charge at all for a guest outside the company's business

The expenses recoverable under 91.501(d) are a closed list. First, fuel, oil, lubricants and other additives; crew travel including food, lodging and ground transportation; and hangar and tie-down costs away from base.

Also insurance obtained for the specific flight; landing fees, airport taxes and similar assessments; and customs, foreign permit and similar fees directly related to the flight. Then in-flight food and beverages, passenger ground transportation, and flight planning and weather contract services.

Finally, an additional charge equal to 100 percent of the fuel, oil, lubricants and additives.

The United Kingdom position

UK Air Operations Regulation (EU) No 965/2012 Part-NCC applies to non-commercial flights in complex motor-powered aircraft. Instead of an AOC, the operator declares to the CAA its aircraft type, operational and continuing airworthiness arrangements and approvals held, completed by the accountable manager (CAA).

Commercial air transport is a different regime requiring an AOC. So the UK charter certificate question is whether the aircraft moves from a declared non-commercial operation to an AOC holder's fleet.

This page describes the regulatory shape, not your specific case. Whether an arrangement is common carriage, private carriage or a genuine part 91 operation is a legal question with serious consequences. Aviation counsel answers it, not a website.

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Questions, answered directly

Placing my jet on a charter certificate vs keeping it private: which makes sense?

Keep it private unless the budget works with zero charter revenue. A part 135 certificate can offset fixed costs, but the certificate holder controls charters. Its maintenance programme and insurance apply, and third-party hours and cycles go on your airframe. To share costs with people you know, 14 CFR 91.501 arrangements such as time sharing may fit without a certificate.

Can I make money chartering out my private jet?

It can offset fixed costs, but it is not a business plan. Revenue depends on aircraft type, age, base and an operator's ability to sell it, none guaranteed. The commercial certificate adds maintenance, insurance, and hours and cycles on your airframe. Build the budget assuming zero charter revenue and see whether it still works.

Who controls the aircraft on a charter flight?

The certificate holder. Operational control of a part 135 flight rests with the certificated operator, not the owner. That follows from certification; a management agreement cannot reassign it.

Sources

This site's own datasets, every figure quoted from its source and dated:

The Aircraft Ownership Cost Model carries 66 published figures read from 13 sources' own pages; the 30 published figures given by cost component (acquisition, fixed, variable, management) run from 700 to 17,378,438 USD, read 11 November 2026.
The Charter Hourly Rate Index carries 139 published figures read from 41 sources' own pages; the 104 published figures given by category run from 1,200 to 28,000 USD, read 11 November 2026.
The Fractional and Jet Card Board carries 9 published figures read from 6 sources' own pages; the 5 published figures given by tier run from 4,500 to 200,000 USD, read 11 November 2026.
The Ownership Tax and Rules carries 5 published figures read from 3 sources' own pages; the 3 published figures given without a breakdown run from 3 to 4,000,000 USD, read 8 November 2026.

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