Reduced-rate flying
Empty leg flights
An empty leg is a private jet flying without passengers, either returning to base or positioning for its next booking. Operators sell those legs at a reduced rate to recover part of a cost they carry anyway. You take the aircraft, route and date as they are.
Why they exist
Someone has to pay for the return flight
Charter aircraft rarely end the day where they started. After dropping passengers, an aircraft either waits or flies on — to its home base, or to the airport where its next booking begins. That repositioning flight burns fuel and crew hours whether or not anyone is on board.
Rather than absorb the whole cost, operators offer these legs at a reduced rate. Industry sources put the discount at up to around 75% of a normal charter price — how that figure is set, and what it carries, is worth reading before you rely on one. You are buying a flight that was going to happen anyway, which is exactly why you cannot change it. The full picture of what a return leg does to a price — waiting, flying home, or two one-ways — has its own guide.
- Fixed route. Departure and arrival airports are set by the operator's next commitment.
- Fixed date and rough time. The window may shift by hours; you have to be able to move with it.
- Fixed aircraft. You get the aircraft that is repositioning, whatever class it happens to be.
Worth it when
Your dates are genuinely flexible, the route already matches a busy corridor such as Amsterdam to Nice or Ibiza — the days after the Monaco Yacht Show are the clearest example, and you are comfortable committing at short notice.
Not worth it when
You have a meeting to make, a party that has to travel together on a set day, or a destination that only a specific aircraft class can reach non-stop. In those cases a normal charter is cheaper than a missed trip.
The honest comparison
Empty leg versus a normal charter
| Aspect | Empty leg | Normal charter |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Reduced, up to about 75% below the normal rate | Full market rate for the sector |
| Route | Fixed by the operator | Any airport pair you choose |
| Date and time | Fixed, and may still move | You set it |
| Aircraft class | Whatever is repositioning | Selected for your trip |
| Cancellation risk | Disappears if the original booking changes | Contractually confirmed |
If the fixed route does not line up with your plans, a normal charter in the right class is usually the better answer. The aircraft comparison shows what each class can do, and the cost guide explains what drives the full price.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
How much cheaper is an empty leg?
Not the same product as a shared or per-seat flight — see the comparison. Published discounts on empty legs run up to roughly 75% of the normal charter rate, according to charter brokers who list them. The size of the discount depends on how close to departure the leg is and how likely the operator thinks it is to sell at all.
Can I change the date or the route?
Almost never, and that is the whole trade. The leg exists because the aircraft has to be somewhere at a particular time for a paying customer. Shifting it by even a few hours usually turns it back into a normal, fully priced charter.
Can an empty leg be cancelled?
Yes. If the original booking that created the leg moves or cancels, the empty leg disappears with it. Treat one as a bonus when your plans are flexible, not as the booking you build a trip around.
How do I hear about them?
Send us the route and the window you could travel in. Empty legs surface at short notice and are gone quickly, so the practical approach is to register your interest in advance rather than to browse a list.
Sources
- Mercury Jets — empty leg flights to Amsterdam — consulted 2026-09-01.
- OpenLegFlights — empty legs in the Netherlands — consulted 2026-09-01.
Flexible dates?
Tell us your route and window
We will flag an empty leg when one matches — and quote a normal charter if it does not.
Last updated by the Mondial Jets team.