Cost Per Seat Mile
 

Lately I've been searching for a place where I could find the cost per seat mile of aircraft (just out of sheer curiosity). I've heard a lot of arguments that RJs are a lot less cost effective than larger jets or turboprops. I don't have reason to doubt these arguments wrong, but I was just wondering if there were any hard numbers out there to get. If anyone knows of a website/source, my curiosity would be much obliged. Thanks!

http://www.bombardier.com/en/0_0/0_0...ay_16_2006.pdf

That's a start. Publicly traded airlines report their CASM (cost per available seat mile)..... The cost is directly related to the companies operational efficiency...as opposed to just the cost of gas, oil, maintenance, and underpaid crews.

Thanks. I've checked out airline quarterly reports, but I've found that they're good for a system-wide analysis, but its hard/impossible to break them down as to aircraft type (unless the company only operates one type). I'll definitely check out the bombardier link, though.

Aviation Week seems to publish this annually, but it's a subscription site.

I know off the top of my head that SWA CASM is less than $0.09, while RJ's are typically $0.11+

Other mainline airplanes vary from $ 0.09 - $0.14+, IIRC.

Keep in mind that RJ CASMs are artificially low due to slave-labor wages...and SWA still has them beat.

Bigger airplanes inherently are more effecient (economy of scale), but there are lots of variables other than size...age, Mx, type of operation, labor cost, etc. A high CASM might still be profitable if nobody else wants to bother with the route in question, and you can charge accordingly.

only on a small amount of routes. they are plenty cost effective, especially when you only pay a crew burger king wages

I never thought of Aviation Week. My dad just renewed his subscription...I'll have to look out for that yearly issue. Thanks for reminding me of that, and I appreciate that other info (as well as everyone else's).

http://www.icao.int/icao/en/ro/allpi...g4/wp28app.pdf

737-800 for teh win!

Take those numbers with a grain of salt....As of SUMMER 2000

The year might have changed and the numbers might have changed but if it burned the least then it's still burning the least now.

Those numbers are HOURLY cost, not cost per seat-mile. Obviously bigger airplanes cost more to operate, but they also have more seats and longer range...ie more revenue! By your logic a C-152 is the ideal airliner (lowest block hour cost with no regard for revenue generating capacity) :rolleyes:

I'm certain that the 777 or A330 would have the lowest CASM.