That's seems pretty high for a small jet. For sake of comparison Southwest says it costs about $4,800/hr to operate a -700. I see how the 145 is not cost effective if $5,000/hr is an accurate number. The -700 burns about 4,800 lbs/hr in cruise and the crew cost (2 pilots + 3 FAs) is about $475/hr. That's $2,700/hr for fuel and crew spread out over 143 seats. Fuel and crew on the -800 is about $3,150/hr spread across 175 seats.