Military jet costs
Discussion
I keep seeing estimates of running costs for the aircraft involved in the Libyan activity, EG £35,000/hr for a Tornado.
Does anyone know if these are direct operating costs or include fixed costs? Or is the difference negligble for these aircraft?
Also, given that they have to do a certain number of hours a month to keep the crews in practice, is every hour on a Libyan mission really an extra hour flying? Or do they do fewer training missions when there are real missions to do?
Does anyone know if these are direct operating costs or include fixed costs? Or is the difference negligble for these aircraft?
Also, given that they have to do a certain number of hours a month to keep the crews in practice, is every hour on a Libyan mission really an extra hour flying? Or do they do fewer training missions when there are real missions to do?
Updated figures publised last November demonstrate the declining average cost for Typhoon as the fleet increase.
Aircraft Financial Year 2010-11 Cost Per Hour
Tornado GR4 35,000
Typhoon 70,000
Harrier GR7/GR9 37,000
Tornado F3 43,000
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2010-11-25...
Aircraft Financial Year 2010-11 Cost Per Hour
Tornado GR4 35,000
Typhoon 70,000
Harrier GR7/GR9 37,000
Tornado F3 43,000
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2010-11-25...
Dr Jekyll said:
I keep seeing estimates of running costs for the aircraft involved in the Libyan activity, EG £35,000/hr for a Tornado.
Does anyone know if these are direct operating costs or include fixed costs? Or is the difference negligble for these aircraft?
Also, given that they have to do a certain number of hours a month to keep the crews in practice, is every hour on a Libyan mission really an extra hour flying? Or do they do fewer training missions when there are real missions to do?
Dont forget that some of that money quoted goes back into UK government coffers anyway so say it costs 35,000. It isnt as if Mr D Cameron goes into a big vault, lifts 35k and hands it to someone else with none of it ever to be seen again.Does anyone know if these are direct operating costs or include fixed costs? Or is the difference negligble for these aircraft?
Also, given that they have to do a certain number of hours a month to keep the crews in practice, is every hour on a Libyan mission really an extra hour flying? Or do they do fewer training missions when there are real missions to do?
I gather that some of the first tranche of Typhoon airframes will be retired within a shorter rather than longer timescale.
Judging your hourly flying cost is always a painful business, particularly when you've just parted company with some serious wonga for maintenance. The general answer is to fly it more, that way your effective hourly rate appears slightly less eye-watering.
That only works if you can be reasonably sure that there is no ultimate upper airframe life, which doesn't appear to be the case for this early tranche of Typhoons.
I suspect if you worked out the hourly rate purely from the average unit purchase cost vs. the number of hours flown for those examples, you'd soil yourself.
Judging your hourly flying cost is always a painful business, particularly when you've just parted company with some serious wonga for maintenance. The general answer is to fly it more, that way your effective hourly rate appears slightly less eye-watering.
That only works if you can be reasonably sure that there is no ultimate upper airframe life, which doesn't appear to be the case for this early tranche of Typhoons.
I suspect if you worked out the hourly rate purely from the average unit purchase cost vs. the number of hours flown for those examples, you'd soil yourself.
Edited by eharding on Monday 28th March 00:15
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