Brands

PlaneSense Review 2026: Fleet, Cost, and Fit

How PlaneSense's fractional shares and CobaltPass card work

PlaneSense sells fractional shares and a jet card on one aircraft family other programs skip. Its fleet is built entirely around the Pilatus PC-12 turboprop and, more recently, the PC-24 light jet. We check every operator’s own site for what it puts in writing before quoting a figure, and PlaneSense’s biggest claim, the world’s largest managed fleet of those two aircraft types, held up against public fleet counts.

The short version: PlaneSense fits a buyer who values short and unpaved runway access over cabin size, flies 50 or more hours a year for the fractional share or 25 or fewer for the CobaltPass card, and does not need to cross an ocean. If your typical trip needs a large cabin or a transatlantic leg, look elsewhere first.

What PlaneSense Is

Founded in 1995 and headquartered at Portsmouth International Airport in New Hampshire, PlaneSense runs a fleet limited to two aircraft types rather than the mixed light-to-large-cabin lineups NetJets and Flexjet fly. Every owner and card member flies the Pilatus PC-12 turboprop or the Pilatus PC-24 light jet. As of mid-2025, the managed fleet stood at 64 aircraft, 46 PC-12s and 18 PC-24s, which PlaneSense and independent trade coverage both describe as the largest civilian fleet of either type under one program.

That single-family approach is the whole pitch. Every owner and card member flies the same two airframes, maintained by PlaneSense’s own Part 145 repair shop rather than a mixed network of outside vendors. The tradeoff shows up immediately in mission range. Neither aircraft crosses the Atlantic with a full cabin, so PlaneSense competes on short-to-medium domestic and near-continental trips, not on the long-haul routes a Gulfstream-heavy fleet covers.

The PlaneSense Fleet

Both PlaneSense aircraft share one capability few competitors offer: unpaved and short-field runway access. The PC-12 and PC-24 can land on grass, gravel, and strips under 3,000 feet, opening thousands of small airports that a Challenger 350 or Gulfstream cannot use. If your destination is a lake house on a 2,500-foot grass strip rather than a regional jetport, that changes which operator can actually get you there.

The PC-24’s 2,000-nautical-mile range and 440-knot cruise speed cover most of the continental United States nonstop. Our Pilatus PC-24 specs page has the full performance breakdown if you are cross-shopping the jet itself. Neither aircraft seats more than 10. A PlaneSense share or card is not the fit for a 12-person group that a Challenger 350 or Gulfstream handles in one trip.

How the Fractional Share and CobaltPass Card Work

A PlaneSense fractional share starts at 1/16th of a PC-12 or PC-24, with what PlaneSense calls customized share sizes built around how many hours you actually fly. PlaneSense recommends the fractional program for flyers logging 50 or more hours a year. It advertises no blackout dates and guaranteed availability across the fleet, the same guarantees NetJets and Flexjet make on their own share programs.

Buyers who fly less can skip the share entirely. The CobaltPass jet cardA prepaid block of flight hours on a set aircraft category, bought at a fixed or capped hourly rate. No aircraft ownership is involved., launched in 2024, is built for 25 hours a year or fewer on a 24-month contract. Its purchase price prepays the hourly fee, fuel, landing, and FBOFixed Base Operator — the private terminal you depart from, separate from the commercial airport building. Handles fuel, ground transport, crew and passenger services. charges in one number, and PlaneSense charges no repositioning fee within its standard billing area. That all-in structure matters at the invoice stage: a card that bundles fuel and fees into one purchase price is easier to budget against than one that lets a fuel surcharge float. As of this review, the PC-24 CobaltPass card is open for new members. PlaneSense’s own site lists the PC-12 CobaltPass tier as sold out.

Flights on either program need 24 to 48 hours’ notice through a round-the-clock operations center. That window is longer than the same-day availability a large fractional fleet can sometimes offer on off-peak dates. It is the tradeoff for a smaller, two-aircraft fleet: fewer available tails means less slack to absorb a last-minute request.

What PlaneSense Costs

PlaneSense does not publish a rate card on its own site. Any number you see quoted is a third-party estimate rather than an official price, the same gap Nicholas Air and most brokered cards leave open. Private Jet Card Comparisons puts CobaltPass hourly rates from $4,950 plus 7.5% federal excise tax as of its most recent published survey. PlaneSense itself discloses neither the fractional share price nor the exact hourly rate by aircraft type. Treat that figure as a planning number and confirm the current rate with PlaneSense before you commit funds.

The entry math is simpler to work out even without a full rate sheet. Below 25 hours a year, the CobaltPass floor, a card program rarely pencils out better than charter booked trip by trip. Above 50 hours, the fractional share becomes the better structure. It carries the same federal tax treatment every Part 91 Subpart K program gets: fractional flights are exempt from the 7.5% excise tax under 26 U.S.C. §4261(j) and pay a per-gallon fuel surtax instead. Our fractional jet ownership guide prices that exemption in full against a straight card purchase.

Safety and Operational Record

PlaneSense holds ARGUS Platinum Elite, the highest rating ARGUS International issues, awarded in August 2023 after an on-site audit of PlaneSense’s safety management system and a review of its maintenance and operations record. PlaneSense is one of only five U.S. operators to carry that top tier, and it has held ARGUS Platinum status continuously since 2016. PlaneSense is also registered under the International Standard for Business Aircraft Operations (IS-BAO), the same third-party safety framework Nicholas Air cites.

The maintenance side runs in-house too. Atlas Aircraft Center, PlaneSense’s own FAA-certified Part 145 repair station, has won the FAA’s Diamond Award for Excellence every year since 2002. It runs two hangars: a 40,000-square-foot facility in Portsmouth and a 36,000-square-foot facility in Boulder City, Nevada. Ask PlaneSense for its current ARGUS certificate before you fund a share or a card. Ratings like this one expire and must be renewed, and a lapsed certificate is worth catching before you sign, whichever operator you are checking.

Where PlaneSense Is Genuinely Weaker

Three spots where a rival serves you better.

Long or transoceanic range. Neither the PC-12 nor the PC-24 reaches Europe or crosses the Pacific nonstop with a full cabin. If transatlantic travel is a regular part of your flying, a NetJets or Flexjet share built around a large-cabin aircraft covers that mission and PlaneSense does not.

Cabin size and group travel. Both PlaneSense aircraft top out at 10 seats. A family or client group larger than that needs a second aircraft or a different operator entirely, where a Challenger 350 or Gulfstream fits the group in one trip.

Published pricing. PlaneSense discloses neither its fractional share prices nor its CobaltPass hourly rate on its own site. If you want a public number to anchor a comparison before you ever call sales, Sentient Jet is the one major card program that publishes one. Our jet card programs breakdown covers how it stacks up against operators that quote privately.

PlaneSense Compared with the Main Alternatives

See our Nicholas Air review and NetJets review for the full detail behind either alternative. Both cover a wider cabin range than PlaneSense’s two-aircraft fleet, at the cost of the short-field access neither one can match.

Who Should Buy PlaneSense

Buy PlaneSense if your typical trip is domestic, under 2,000 nautical miles, and sometimes lands somewhere a jetport doesn’t reach. The PC-12 and PC-24’s unpaved-runway certification is the one feature no large-cabin fractional program can replicate, and the ARGUS Platinum Elite rating puts PlaneSense’s safety record ahead of most operators its size.

Who This Is Not For

Skip PlaneSense if you fly internationally or need a cabin bigger than 10 seats. Neither PlaneSense aircraft crosses an ocean nonstop, and a family or business group larger than 10 needs a second aircraft here where a large-cabin competitor seats everyone in one trip. A published rate sheet is the other reason to look elsewhere. PlaneSense, like most of this market, makes you call before you see a number.

What Would Change Our Answer

Two changes would close the gap with the larger fractional programs. A published rate card would remove the same friction every non-disclosing operator carries, letting a buyer compare PlaneSense against a competitor’s numbers before the first call. A longer-range or larger-cabin aircraft added to the fleet would open the international and group-travel missions PlaneSense currently has to send elsewhere.

Ask PlaneSense for the current CobaltPass hourly rate and fractional share pricing for your target hours. Confirm the ARGUS Platinum Elite certificate is current before you fund a share or a card.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is PlaneSense?

PlaneSense is a fractional aircraft ownership and jet card operator founded in 1995, flying a fleet built entirely around the Pilatus PC-12 turboprop and Pilatus PC-24 light jet. It manages 64 aircraft as of mid-2025, described as the largest civilian fleet of either type under one program.

Is PlaneSense worth it?

PlaneSense is worth it if you fly 50 or more hours a year, want short or unpaved runway access, and do not need a large cabin or transatlantic range. Below 25 hours a year the CobaltPass jet card fits better than the fractional share. Above that, buyers who need a bigger cabin or an ocean crossing are usually better served by NetJets or Flexjet.

How much does PlaneSense cost?

PlaneSense does not publish rates, so any figure online is a third-party estimate. Private Jet Card Comparisons puts CobaltPass hourly rates from $4,950 plus 7.5% federal excise taxA 7.5% US tax on domestic air transportation, charged on top of the quoted charter price. It does not apply to flights that begin or end outside the continental US.. Fractional shares start at 1/16th of a PC-12 or PC-24, with pricing available only by contacting PlaneSense directly.

What is the difference between PlaneSense fractional ownership and the CobaltPass jet card?

Fractional ownershipBuying a share of a specific aircraft, typically 1/16 or larger, which entitles you to a set number of flight hours a year plus a monthly management fee. is a titled 1/16th-or-larger share of a specific aircraft, recommended for 50 or more flight hours a year. The CobaltPass jet card is a prepaid, no-equity program on a 24-month contract built for 25 hours a year or fewer, with fuel, landing, and FBO fees bundled into the purchase price. PlaneSense does not publish the CobaltPass rate itself; Private Jet Card Comparisons puts it at $4,950 an hour plus 7.5% federal excise tax as of its most recent published survey, the same third-party estimate cited earlier on this page.

Is PlaneSense safe?

PlaneSense holds ARGUS Platinum Elite, the highest rating ARGUS International issues, one of only five U.S. operators to carry it, and has held ARGUS Platinum status continuously since 2016. PlaneSense is also IS-BAO registered and maintains its own fleet through an in-house FAA Part 145 repair station that has won the FAA's Diamond Award for Excellence every year since 2002.

What are the main alternatives to PlaneSense?

Nicholas Air and NetJets are the closest operators to price against PlaneSense. Nicholas Air sells a similar owned-fleet card and fractional structure across six aircraft types with a longer maximum range. NetJets offers the market's largest fractional fleet across five cabin categories. Neither matches PlaneSense's unpaved-runway capability. See our Nicholas Air review and NetJets review for the full comparisons.

We update this guide as aircraft, program, and route pricing changes. Spotted something out of date? Tell us and we'll check it.