PrivateJetSky / Aircraft / Cessna Citation CJ3+
Cessna Citation CJ3+
Beloved for dispatch reliability and honest operating costs.
What you are paying for
The CJ3+ is the accountant’s favorite light jet: direct operating costs among the lowest of any twinjet, dispatch reliability that borders on boring, and single-pilot certification that trims crew bills for owner-operators. It gives up ramp presence and 40 knots to a Phenom 300. It gives up very little else.
What real trips cost EST
| Route | Distance | Block time | One-way, all-in |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York → Palm Beach | 902 nm | 2h 43m | $10K–$14K |
| New York → Chicago | 619 nm | 2h 00m | $7.6K–$10K |
| Los Angeles → Las Vegas | 199 nm | 1h 00m | $7.6K–$10K |
Figures include US FET or typical international taxes, standard fees, and the two-hour daily minimum where it applies. Real quotes move with positioning and dates; reproduce any of these in the Route Estimator, or check a quote you already hold against them in the Quote Audit.
RATE BASIS Private Jet Card Comparisons: Q2 2026 jet card rate report privatejetcardcomparisons.com read 2026-08-31 · NATA: 2026 federal excise tax rates (IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32) nata.aero read 2026-08-31
Class rate ranges are cross-checked each quarter against five published seller rate cards, printed side by side in the cost index.
Buying one instead?
Typical pre-owned asks run EST $7.5M–$9.5M. Owning a Cessna Citation CJ3+ and flying it 200 hours a year models out to roughly $1.68M–$2.27M per year all-in: crew, hangar, insurance, maintenance programs, and depreciation included. Open this aircraft in the Ownership Desk to stress-test the assumption against your own hours.
Alternatives worth pricing
- Embraer Phenom 300E: Best-selling light jet for over a decade, and the default answer under 2,000 nm.
- Cessna Citation CJ4 Gen2: The biggest single-pilot Citation: light-jet bills, midsize legs.
- Learjet 75 Liberty: The last Learjet ever built. Fast, low, and increasingly collectible.