Sydney to Melbourne is the busiest route in Australia and the sixth busiest domestic route in the world by scheduled seats in September 2026, according to OAG, carrying 8.12 million airline passengers in 2025 according to BITRE. It is also one of the shortest interstate sectors, at 706 km, which makes it one of the cheaper introductions to private flying in this country. A light jet costs roughly $10,500 to $18,000 depending on the operator and on what the price covers, and the flight itself takes 70 to 75 minutes.
In our reading, which of the four airports you use at each end decides whether that money is well spent, because the drive to Tullamarine and the queue inside it are a large part of what you are paying to avoid.
Prices shown are published estimates only. Your final price will depend on the aircraft available, travel date, route, passenger numbers, luggage and any additional fees. Request a quote from the charter company for an exact price.
What operators publish for this route
| Company | Price | Basis | Aircraft |
|---|---|---|---|
| FlightCharter | $10,500 to $13,000 | Return, ex GST | Light jet |
| Navair | $11,000 | Same-day return | Light jet or turboprop |
| Navair | From $11,500 plus GST | Same-day return, up to 4 passengers | Modern business jet |
| Charter One | $12,000 to $18,000 | Charter, basis not stated | Light jet (CitationJet) |
| Charter One | $18,000 to $25,000 | Charter, basis not stated | Midsize |
| Navair | $30,000 | Same-day return | Mid or heavy jet |
| Airly | $14,000 to $35,000+ | Charter, basis not stated | Not specified |
| Airly Jet Card | From $7,672 | One way, card members | Card fleet |
| FlightCharter (empty leg) | $8,500 ex GST | One way, Sydney to Essendon, flight date 1 October 2026, listed on 29 September 2026 | Praetor 500, up to 8 seats |
| FlightCharter (empty leg) | $12,500 ex GST | One way, Sydney to Tullamarine, flight date 14 October 2026, listed on 29 September 2026 | Legacy 600, up to 13 seats |
Prices checked: 7 September 2026. Empty legs checked: 29 September 2026.
The spread from $10,500 to $35,000 looks alarming until you separate the bases. FlightCharter and Navair are quoting a light jet return. Charter One's higher figure is a midsize aircraft. Airly's top end covers larger jets again. Compare like with like and the light jet return sits in a tight band around $11,000 to $13,000.
Black Jet is pre-selling a different model entirely: unlimited Sydney to Melbourne flights for a flat monthly fee, on a new turboprop with two pilots. It frames the status quo as private charters costing $11,000 one way. The monthly price is not published, and Black Jet is awaiting regulatory approval, its website says. We checked the CASA register on 29 September 2026 and could not find an entry for it, so it is not yet something you can book.
What it costs per seat
Charter One puts six executives on this route at $2,000 to $3,000 a head. At the light jet prices above, a $12,000 return split six ways is $2,000 each.
Whether that is good value depends on the business class fare on your date. Virgin's lead-in fare is $385 one way, checked 11 September 2026, but that is the cheapest seat in limited numbers. Check the fare before you make the comparison, because it moves a great deal by day of week and how far ahead you book.
A Citation Mustang seats four. Navair's "from $11,500 plus GST" is quoted for up to four passengers, so putting six people on board means a larger light jet and a higher price than the one you divided.
The time saving is easier to pin down. Charter One puts the private flight at about 70 minutes, against two and a half to three hours door to door on a commercial service. Airly makes a similar claim of about 70 minutes against three hours or more. Black Jet says commercial travel wastes more than two hours on every Sydney to Melbourne round trip. All three sell private flights, so treat these as their claims rather than independent measurements, but the direction is not in dispute.
Which airports
In Sydney, Kingsford Smith has the ExecuJet fixed base operation, which is a private terminal for charter passengers, along with customs for international flights. Air Charter Network notes the minimum runway charge there rose from $91.74 to $519.86. Bankstown sits about 22 km from the CBD, has no Commonwealth curfew, and Navair runs a private terminal there with car parking. For anyone in western Sydney, Bankstown is the closer field.
In Melbourne, Essendon Fields is 10 km from the CBD and has an ExecuJet facility, which makes it the obvious choice for a city meeting. It handles around 50,000 aircraft movements a year. The problem is the curfew. Under the Air Navigation (Essendon Fields Airport) Regulations 2018, jets cannot operate between 11pm and 6am except in an emergency or police operation, and Essendon cannot be nominated as a planned alternate. Propeller aircraft under 45,000 kg with a noise certificate can still operate.
Tullamarine and Moorabbin have no Commonwealth curfew, and Navair says it can fly from both 24 hours a day. So a dinner in Melbourne that runs late is a Tullamarine departure, not an Essendon one, and Tullamarine is about 23 km from the CBD against about 10 km for Essendon.
Sydney's curfew works the other way. It applies between 11pm and 6am under the Sydney Airport Curfew Act 1995, but the Sydney Airport Curfew (Curfew Aircraft) Instrument 2015 lists low-noise jet types that may operate without using the movement quota, and the department describes them as mostly business and small freight jets. Those flights must operate over Botany Bay, taking off to the south and landing to the north. In practice many business jets can leave Sydney late when an airline cannot, which is one of the genuine advantages of chartering on this route.
Which aircraft
A Citation Mustang or Phenom 100 carries four or five people and is the cheapest way to do this sector. A Citation CJ2 takes six, a CJ3 or CJ4 six or seven, and a Phenom 300 seven to nine. Above that you are into midsize aircraft like the Praetor 500 at eight seats, or heavy jets like the Challenger 604 at ten and the Legacy 600 at thirteen.
For a 706 km sector, range is not the constraint. Seats and luggage are. Asian Sky Group's 2025 charter report names Sydney to Melbourne as a route medium jets fly direct, and it notes Australia's preference for light and very light jets, which suggests availability at the small end is good.
A note on luggage, because it catches people out. Navair says standard 23 kg suitcases are fine on business jets, but a twin-piston aircraft may allow only 7 kg of carry-on. Tell the operator what you are bringing before the quote, not at the aircraft.
How much notice
Navair says a charter can be arranged within hours, subject to availability. Airly's Jet Card members need 48 hours on a Citation Mustang and up to 72 on a CJ2. Charter One says a booking made inside 48 hours typically costs 20 to 30 per cent more, and a month ahead usually gets a better rate.
Melbourne Cup week and the Australian Grand Prix are the two dates on this route where availability disappears and prices move, both flagged as peak by FlightCharter and Charter One. If you are flying for either, book well out.
Who flies it
Navair, FlightCharter, Charter One and Airly all publish a price for this sector. Some companies are operators, holding their own Air Operator's Certificate from CASA, and some are brokers arranging flights on aircraft someone else operates. We checked the CASA register on 29 September 2026. Navair holds CASA.AOC.0056 and says its command pilots hold a minimum of 2,000 hours with the majority above 3,500. FlightCharter and Airly both state on their own sites that they are brokers, not operators. Charter One did not appear under the names we searched, which is not proof it holds no certificate.
Ask any company you are quoting which entity will operate the flight and whether it holds an AOC. The company that sells you the flight is not always the one that flies it, and CASA's own consumer advice makes exactly this point.
Common questions
How long is a private jet flight from Sydney to Melbourne?
Between 70 and 75 minutes in the air, according to Charter One and Airly. Allow 12 to 30 minutes at the terminal beforehand. Airly says 12 minutes from kerb, Navair says 15 to 20 and Charter One says 15 to 30.
Can I fly private out of Sydney after 11pm?
Often, yes. Sydney's curfew runs from 11pm to 6am, but low-noise jet types listed in the Sydney Airport Curfew (Curfew Aircraft) Instrument 2015, mostly business jets, may operate without a movement quota, flying over Botany Bay. Confirm your specific aircraft type with the operator. The reverse applies in Melbourne, where jets cannot use Essendon in those hours.
Is Melbourne to Sydney cheaper than Sydney to Melbourne?
Not as a rule. It is the same sector and the same flying time. What changes the price is where the aircraft happens to be based, since positioning it to your departure airport costs money. That asymmetry is exactly what creates empty legs in one direction and not the other.
Can I do it as a day trip?
Yes. Navair quotes a same-day return on this route, and FlightCharter publishes a return price. The aircraft and crew wait for you, and Charter One notes that ground standby time is billable, so a long day costs more than a short one.
What is the cheapest way to fly private between Sydney and Melbourne?
An empty leg, if your timing is flexible. On 29 September 2026 FlightCharter listed Sydney to Essendon on a Praetor 500 at $8,500 excluding GST and Sydney to Tullamarine on a 13 seat Legacy 600 at $12,500. Both are one way on a fixed date, and both can be cancelled if the original charter changes.
Get quotes for this route and compare the all-in prices side by side.