Great experience with SATSAir

I had a really terrific experience with satsair this week that I think was a glimpse of the promise of the SR22, Eclipse, and other VLJs (hopefully the SRJet). Full disclosure: i’m in no way related to the company, just a pilot and aviation buff who hopes and hopes that some of these innovations in GA have a big impact.

I’m based in N.California but had a week of east coast meetings from DC, NYC, RDU, CHO to BOS. A gruelling schedule, particularly b/c it started with a sunday night redeye. Go Jetblue!

On Weds, I had a business meeting in Raleigh that was scheduled to end around 11am and another in Charlottesville scheduled to begin at 3pm. The meetings were for me and 2 others on my team. I had to make the RDU and CHO meetings happen on the same day given availability of all parties. I checked commercial options and they were a) expensive and b) impossible because all options required connections. Impossible was really the key problem.

I recalled seeing a post for SATS on COPA so I found them and gave a ring. . . They quoted me about $550.00 all in for the 1hr flight. 3 people, $550 total, one hour. I also priced a B200 and a Lear 35. those costs around $4k and up given deadhead costs. So $500 vs $4000.

I chose the SR22 and it worked seemlessly. we were greeted by our pilot up at the local FBO, loaded up, launched, driven, then dropped off at our destination. the G2 was comfortable for 3 of us (i sent our weights the day before to dispatch). bose headsets and a smooth ride made it great for our one non-small plane passenger. the SATS plane was fully loaded, all the jepp charts and wx displayed on the MFD. as an aside, i was really impressed with both the wx and the approach chart experience. it sure sold me (although i’m already sold)…

Our pilot was a high time military/airline ATP. great guy and very seasoned. we flew IFR, and it was a really professional operation. felt just like we were flying netjets, but for the cost :).

For me (a west coast pilot with some regional flying needs out east), this was an exceptionally affordable and convenient way to get around. they sell packages of 10hrs for around $450 per hr, which lowers the hourly cost (all costs hobbes with 15 mins taxi alloted, or so i was told).

it was really impressive. rumor has it that they are growing covg areas across the US and taking lots of deliveries of new '22s.

just thought i’d share with the group. it might be soon that the dream we’ve all shared about low cost vlj and other new platforms is around the corner.

best to all for a great holiday.
jc

i take it your flight was four adults? Heavy coats, briefcases? Does the 22 handle that without any problem…I can imagine the engine has more than enough power, but does the weight and balance fit in the POH limits?

I have also heard very good things about Satsair which in the long run could give the airlines a run for their money. I can fly from the Washington DC area to South Carolina in the Hilton Head area faster door to door in my Cirrus than I can on the airlines. The closest non stop airline flight is to Savannah which is just 1 45minute car ride. But there is also an airport right on Hilton Head that Satsair can take you in a Cirrus which is exactly what I do in my own plane.
Much less expensive that the airlines as well!

David:

It’s simple: just take less fuel. In general terms, the SR22 is a four person tab fuel or three person full tanks aircraft. This is obviously going to depend on the weight of each person, their location in the plane and the weight of the luggage.

$450/hr? pricey, prolly could do it at $350/hr and still make a profit but…

what about return/deadhead? thats where the costs get driven up.

that said, my GTS rocks and we’ve flown it with two big guys and an obscene amount of luggage… granted, we took off tail heavy and flew 5 hrs so our wt was in limits…

j

I don’t think $450 an hour is unreasonable considering they have different maintenance issues, insurance is probably much higher, pilot cost, etc. Neil Myers could fill us in on these costs I’m sure! My bet is that cost is per hour and you pay the dead head fees. Like Neil said earlier, once you get enough planes in the fleet, then dead heads almost go away and it becomes a really reasonable deal. I would pay it rather than go commercial (especially if I’m flying from one small area to another).

I do not believe Satsair charges for deadheading. You only pay for the time you are in the plane when it is operating.

If so, then that price is a heck of a deal!

There are a lot of details you can find about the company at www.satsair.com.