Citation XLS+

The Citation XLS+ is chartered as a whole aircraft, not per seat. Planning rates start around US$5,900 per occupied flight hour before airport, handling and navigation charges. On most African sectors the larger variable is positioning: if no Citation XLS+ is sitting at your departure airport, the empty leg flown in to collect you is priced into the quote, which is why a short hop can cost more than its flight time suggests. Every route page on this site shows the all-in estimate rather than the bare hourly rate.

Up to 9 passengers in the cabin layout typically offered for charter in Africa. Operators configure individual aircraft differently, so the usable seat count on the specific tail allocated to your trip is confirmed at quote stage, along with baggage allowance, which is usually the binding limit on safari and golf trips rather than seats.

The Citation XLS+ plans to roughly 1,700 nautical miles (about 3,148 km) with normal reserves. From its Accra base that reaches scheduled airports in 33 African countries without a fuel stop. Hot and high departures, strong headwinds and a full cabin all reduce that figure, so longer sectors are planned with a technical stop where needed.

It needs roughly 3,900 ft of paved runway at typical charter weights. On our airport data that covers 360 of the 394 African airports with scheduled service, before allowing for elevation, temperature and runway condition on the day. Shorter or unpaved strips, including most safari airstrips, are outside its limits and are flown on a turboprop instead.

Citation XLS+ aircraft in our fleet data are based at Abidjan, Accra, Addis Ababa, Cairo, Dakar, Johannesburg and other bases. Departing from or near one of those cities keeps positioning cost down, because the aircraft does not have to fly an empty leg to reach you.

The Citation XLS+ has a wingspan of 17.17 m (56.3 ft) and an overall length of 15.79 m (51.8 ft). Those dimensions decide which hangars and apron stands can take it, which matters at smaller African airports where parking for business jets is limited.

The Citation XLS+ has a maximum take-off weight (MTOW) of 9,163 kg (20,201 lb), with a maximum payload of about 1,043 kg and an empty weight of about 5,900 kg. On hot, high or short runways the usable take-off weight is lower, which can limit fuel, passengers or baggage on the day.

The Citation XLS+ is certified to a maximum operating altitude of 45,000 ft (13,716 m) and cruises at about 425 knots (787 km/h). The crew picks the actual cruising altitude for each sector from its length, the aircraft weight and the winds; short hops are flown lower.

Typical baggage capacity for the Citation XLS+ is 2.0 m3. Soft-sided bags pack far better than hard cases, and on safari sectors the combined weight of passengers and bags is usually the real limit, so give the operator your bag count when you request a quote.

The Citation XLS+ is powered by 2 x P&WC PW545C turbofans. It is flown by a crew of 2. It is built by Cessna (Textron Aviation) (2004-present).