Cheyenne IV

[6Pack]

Hi!

I just joined up a little while ago.  I started out with $4,000,000, and at first I thought that was decent amount of money, I soon realized the only aircraft I could purchase was a Cheyenne IV.  I missed the note saying the best option for starting is to lease, I bought it.  Now I have only one small aircraft and not enough to purchase another.  Figured I could lease one, and it says fleet commonality is key.  There are no other Cheyenne aircraft available.  Is this the appropriate place to see if anyone has them in their fleet that they're not using too much and can lease them?  Just wondering.

[Daemus]

I don't have the plane you need but I do have some comments that I hope will help you make a decision regarding your dilemma if you don't find someone willing to throw one on the market.

Fleet commonality is important because it keeps maintenance costs down. 1 replacement engine on hand for each of 5 different planes or 1 for 5 same model planes. 5 mechanics for a fleet of 5 different planes or 1 mechanic for 5 same model planes. Numbers for conceptual visualization, I don't know the specific numbers yet.

Low maintenance in great. The same concept applies to routes. 5 planes between the same 2 airports equals staff at 1 airport. 5 planes between 6 different airports (5 destinations + 1 central origin) means 6 sets of airport staff.

Those low overheads are great and are definitely something you should strive for, or at least keep in mind when planning your next move, but they are rarely possible outside a sandbox world. Things happen, factors change, 2 airports may not be able to supply the passengers you need for all your planes; in your case the exact plane you need for commonality may not always be available, either at all or at a price that makes fiscal sense. Diversity may be necessary to keep ticket volume up. Just work on doing some math using the data relating to your situation and come up with the best scenario for you to pursue from a fiscal standpoint. Remember though that fleet commonality isn't limited to matching planes... it can also stretch to similar models and engines.

From what I can see for a start-up company, leasing is not only a better option vs owning, but is the only option when looking to build up a company at a reasonable rate. Leasing is more expensive long-term but the real value lies in getting a higher volume today. I wouldn't lease a car for my personal use, but when it comes to something you will make profit on it can make a lot of sense. More planes equals more potential income and that income is necessary to battle initial overhead.

Regarding your specific dilemma, I would first do the numbers, figuring out what fiscally should work for you (if anything). Remember, you have the option to cut personnel salaries to save on overhead. You should asses route options to find ones with as little competition as possible that have the passenger load you need for your plane size in the hopes that you can keep a higher LF%, without reducing ticket prices to be competitive with the big guys. Look at the option of moving your base of operations if you set up in a large airport, going to a smaller one with less competition and lower overhead (office space cost and slot fees come to mind), running small routes between small airports with low demand where you aren't competing against large companies that have airliners they can't land because of runway sizes or would go broke running with 40 passengers per day available for the route and a plane capacity of 150.

Consider bankruptcy. I have bankrupted two companies by choice (both with cash on-hand and income) just to try again and test a different airport and business model for a new company. After you pay your credits to join a world, you just pay the weekly credits. You are allowed to bankrupts a company 3 times for a total of 4 tries at starting new before you have to pay the join world fee again. Just make sure you choose the choice on the bankruptcy screen where you just bankrupt your company, not the one where you leave the game world (having to pay the join world fee again to come back).

My final thought on your situation is to take a look at loans. Since you own a plane, you have collateral that a bank might take towards a loan. If you are having liquidity problems when looking at getting a second plane, a loan might solve that problem if one is available. Just keep in mind, you already have a loan for 1 million of the 4 you started with so getting another loan could add extra interest that you can't keep up with if you don't get the numbers straight before deciding to take it.

[Ilyushin]

There's a Cheyenne IV on the market right now for 3 million.

Take it now you can

[6Pack]

Hey!

Thanks for that advice.  I actually just posted a thread looking for advice like that in the general forum.  I resolved my Cheyenne issue with the help of Lancart Airlines.  In the end I got rid of the Cheyenne and got 4 Saab 2000's.  Thing is my airline seemed to have lost its momentum, plateaued and stopped growing.  Possibly a bad bad combination of routing, marketing and aircraft choice.  The Saab seems like a decent aircraft.  Holds a good deal of people and moves quickly.  I'm sure it has more potential, but I'm just not adept at tapping it yet.