Every operator knows how much deadhead they fly. Few know how much of that deadhead is sellable, and the gap between those two figures is where the money sits.
Not all empty legs are alike
The one returning to base. A job ends in Tamarindo and the aircraft goes home to San José: 97.1 nautical miles with nobody behind. It is the easiest to sell because you set the time.
The one going out to collect. It leaves base for Quepos — 33.4 nautical miles — for a charter that starts there. Sellable, but with a hard condition: the passenger has to be ready at a time that is not negotiable, because the job afterwards governs.
And the one chaining two jobs. Liberia to Tamarindo is 23.2 nautical miles. In practice it is not sellable: the leg is so short that boarding and disembarking outlast the flight, and slotting it in risks the second job.
The first category pays. The other two are overrated.
What stops them being filled, and it is almost never price
Short notice. An empty leg becomes known when the main job is confirmed, and that can be two days out. We work with empty legs: they arise from operations already confirmed, are listed at short notice and are not guaranteed. Ask us what is available that day. There is no time for a campaign: there is time to list it and wait.
Time rigidity. Whoever buys an empty leg buys your schedule, not theirs. Every hour of margin you can give multiplies the chance of selling it, and that is the real lever.
And the base. The aircraft may need to reposition to the departure aerodrome, and that leg forms part of the quote. An operator based in Liberia generates a different empty-leg map from one based in San José, even flying the same destinations.
The sum worth doing
It is not "what do I charge for this leg". It is how much of my direct cost do I recover without compromising the next job.
An empty leg sold at direct cost yields no margin, but it turns an hour of loss into a neutral hour — and in an operation with the aircraft grounded half the month, that difference decides the year.
We show a "from" price per route; the final fare depends on the date, the group and the baggage, and is confirmed in writing before booking.
What does move the needle
List the leg as soon as the main job is confirmed, not when a day is left.
Give a time range rather than a time. "Tomorrow afternoon" sells; "tomorrow at 15:40" almost never does.
And state the category honestly. A passenger expecting a Caravan who finds a small twin does not come back, and the discount does not make up for that loss. The specific aircraft is assigned on confirmation, based on passenger count, baggage and the destination field.
There is a fourth point almost nobody applies: list the leg that is not fully confirmed yet, marked as such. Someone who knows the possibility exists will wait; someone who hears the day before already has other plans. The cost of listing a leg that then falls through is an apology; the cost of not listing it is the whole sale.
When it is not worth it
On legs under thirty nautical miles. Ground time eats the benefit, and the passenger who buys one of these rarely feels it was worth the trouble either.
And when the next job has thin margin. An empty leg that risks a confirmed charter is a bad piece of business even if it sells well.
Drake Bay is 83.5 nautical miles from San José: that one is worth listing.
Frequently asked questions
Which empty leg sells best?
The return to base, because you set the time and it risks no other job.
Why do short legs not sell?
Because boarding and disembarking outlast the flight. Liberia–Tamarindo is 23.2 NM.
Is price the problem?
Almost never. It is short notice and time rigidity. Every hour of margin multiplies the chance of a sale.
What price makes sense?
Whatever recovers direct cost without compromising the next job. A neutral hour is not an hour of loss.
When should I list it?
As soon as the main job is confirmed, not the day before. We work with empty legs: they arise from operations already confirmed, are listed at short notice and are not guaranteed. Ask us what is available that day.
Does my base matter?
A great deal. The aircraft may need to reposition to the departure aerodrome, and that leg forms part of the quote.
Let us talk
We work with empty legs: they arise from operations already confirmed, are listed at short notice and are not guaranteed. Ask us what is available that day.