How to make a profitable airline.

Hello,just started this game yesterday and no matter what i do i always seem to get into the red within a couple months. Any tips on how to become profitable?

• Cut your employees' salaries all the way down in the beginning. raise them later as your airline becomes more stable and makes more money.
• Don't expand quickly. Operate a few trunk routes with one plane for the first month and maximize hours.
• Scam IFS to start off: 1-star service at top price.
• Don't operate huge numbers of aircraft families. You could be just fine with 5 or 6, instead of 20 or more (which I HAVE seen).
• Two words: Maximum capacity.
• Replace your aircraft after a certain number of years (like 8-12). The older they get, the more they cost to maintain.

Point by point, it's all opposed to what I do.

 

 

* Employee salaries make a little difference. I like keeping mine happy, as an additional challenge. But if your margin is in the red, it's really not so relevant, only if you're forcing high valuation it makes some percentage visible (and I do high valuation with high salaries, because I can). Otherwise, if you're near red in AE, you'll doing other more important things wrong

 

* Expand as quick as you can. That's the only way to greatness. Don't get sloppy, get the planes and put them in use, even if you hit red for a few times, your expansion will be exponentially faster than waiting to get all in the green

 

* Scam IFS is optional as far as I'm concerned. If you don't understand the game yet it's not crucial, learn more important things and you'll get it later.

 

* Don't even think about more than 1 or 2 aircraft families in a first few months unless you're sure you'll be able to turn profit with initial 2 families. Initial maintenance is tough and it can drag you down to destruction. Later do whatever you want. But simply put, try sticking with only 1 family until you know you've handled the basics of the game.

 

* Maximum capacity is not a good strategy for beginners. You can do nicely with a fleet of 737s or ATRs, it's important to be flexible when you learn. Later, max capacity can be good but I like more planes instead of bigger planes. 

 

* Don't worry about replacing aircraft when you're starting. You can even lease 12-15 old planes when you start so rather learn in mature worlds (big used market) than in those only beginning. You'll see more action faster, and those planes are cheaper to get and make only a little bit less money, so they are better for starting airlines if they're on the market, replace them later. Increased maintenance is not such a big expense until they get well over 20 y.o.

I purchase over 20 aircraft on the same model, I still get same results...

 

CASH MONEY... MAKE IT RAIN!!!

 

• Cut your employees' salaries all the way down in the beginning. raise them later as your airline becomes more stable and makes more money.
• Don't expand quickly. Operate a few trunk routes with one plane for the first month and maximize hours.
• Scam IFS to start off: 1-star service at top price.
• Don't operate huge numbers of aircraft families. You could be just fine with 5 or 6, instead of 20 or more (which I HAVE seen).
• Two words: Maximum capacity.
• Replace your aircraft after a certain number of years (like 8-12). The older they get, the more they cost to maintain.

 

Also don't run a spamline EVER. DON'T

• Don't be afraid to take bonds!
• Push your aircraft to the limit.
• Only use 2-3 aircraft family for first 5 years
• Don't lease more than 5 airplanes in first 5 years
• Don't advertise(yet)
• Join a big and reputable alliance A.S.A.P. (for reputation)
• Keep your load factors at least 85% above
• Focus on a single world first

 

• Don't be afraid to take bonds!
• Push your aircraft to the limit.
• Only use 2-3 aircraft family for first 5 years
• Don't lease more than 5 airplanes in first 5 years
• Don't advertise(yet)
• Join a big and reputable alliance A.S.A.P. (for reputation)
• Keep your load factors at least 85% above
• Focus on a single world first

 

Does advertising make any significant difference in the game? I find advertising to be extremely detrimental to my overall profits. Is it really that important in the long-run?

 

• Don't be afraid to take bonds!
• Push your aircraft to the limit.
• Only use 2-3 aircraft family for first 5 years
• Don't lease more than 5 airplanes in first 5 years
• Don't advertise(yet)
• Join a big and reputable alliance A.S.A.P. (for reputation)
• Keep your load factors at least 85% above
• Focus on a single world first

 

"Don't lease more than 5 airplanes."

 

Personally, I wouldn't have survived this game had I not leased all my airplanes in the beginning. Only when my airline started making significant profits did I start to buy them one by one from cheapest to most expensive. I found that it was a very good business strategy. But if I had waited to buy 1 airplane at a time, hoping to make enough to buy the next plane, I would have pretty much remained stagnant in this game. 

 Only when my airline started making significant profits did I start to buy them one by one from cheapest to most expensive. 

 

Agree with the rest, just a small note here: you want to buy them in order of the best return on your capital, not necessarily cheapest first. For example some planes with high depreciation will save you costs of 2-3% a year of the capital invested - the difference between the lease and the depreciation - while others with low depreciation will save you double that or more.

 

Off the top of my head, I think there are actually a handful of planes with such high depreciation that it's cheaper to lease than buy them, when they're new. You can work it out by multiplying price by annual depreciation and dividing by 12. 

Does advertising make any significant difference in the game? I find advertising to be extremely detrimental to my overall profits. Is it really that important in the long-run?

Yes it does. It will raise your reputation significantly thus helping you gain more pax. Its a great advantage over players who don't advertise at all.

"Don't lease more than 5 airplanes."

 

Personally, I wouldn't have survived this game had I not leased all my airplanes in the beginning. Only when my airline started making significant profits did I start to buy them one by one from cheapest to most expensive. I found that it was a very good business strategy. But if I had waited to buy 1 airplane at a time, hoping to make enough to buy the next plane, I would have pretty much remained stagnant in this game. 

JUST DON'T!!! Okay maybe 6 is okay but not more than that! You will find leasing large amounts of aircraft a hobit thus it will just give you a really hard time paying them in the distant future. Stick to 5-6, buy them, then go on expand your fleet however you please. Also if you can find a lot of used aircraft of your choice just buy them. A lot cheaper, then replace them if you got enough money.

JUST DON'T!!! Okay maybe 6 is okay but not more than that! You will find leasing large amounts of aircraft a hobit thus it will just give you a really hard time paying them in the distant future. Stick to 5-6, buy them, then go on expand your fleet however you please. Also if you can find a lot of used aircraft of your choice just buy them. A lot cheaper, then replace them if you got enough money.

*habit

Sorry to say because it would make the game more fun, but advertising makes almost no real difference for the game play side of things, absolutely no economic advantages.

 

Its only practical use is for getting reputation trophies.

 

 

And WTF is this thing with the continued use of large font? Is someone seriously vision impaired and doesn't know how to adapt the browser, or just seeking attention?

WTF is this thing with the continued use of large font? Is someone seriously vision impaired and doesn't know how to adapt the browser, or just seeking attention?

 

yes.

OK. FIRST-Locaton,location,location. Maybe starting at JFK,LAX,LHR etc isn't the smartest. Smaller hubs are easier to start on and are less competitive and cheaper.
NEXT-use short routes. You'll find that ATL-CLT tix prices aren't that far off of ATL-JFK. Short ones make the $.
THIRD-EXPAND. Anderson

OK. FIRST-Locaton,location,location. Maybe starting at JFK,LAX,LHR etc isn't the smartest. Smaller hubs are easier to start on and are less competitive and cheaper.
NEXT-use short routes. You'll find that ATL-CLT tix prices aren't that far off of ATL-JFK. Short ones make the $.
THIRD-EXPAND.And don't be afraid of used a/c,especially later in the game. Occasionally you can find great deals for 1-2 YO aircraft, often already in a desirable setting, in whole fleet sizes. While you shouldn't buy/lease a 30 strong fleet of 787 on bonds, don't be afraid to take out a 2.5m bond and get a couple 737/A320 size aircraft.
Finally, make wise choices for AC. Not all your A319s need to be LR and the Concorde is just not a profitable plane in this game.
Youull probably fail many times. Its normal-dont freak.

Andy-J

Dont start in huge airports like LHR, gate costs will tear you a new one at the start.

1 aircraft family to start with until you have a few million DOP.

Lower staff reserve % to 5%

Dont touch anything russian or less than 50 seats until you have a good grasp of what aircraft is optimal for each route.

Don't

 

 

• Don't be afraid to take bonds!
• Don't lease more than 5 airplanes in first 5 years

I disagree with these points because bonds can destroy a small airline quickly and massive growth is key to success to just lease as many planes as you can.

 bonds can destroy a small airline quickly 

lolno 

 

Bonds are extremely useful at the beginning of the game, and because you think that bonds can quickly destroy an airline shows you have no skill.

 

 

 Bonds can destroy a small airline quickly and massive growth is key to success to just lease as many planes as you can.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bonds are extremely useful at the beginning of the game.

Not nessarly

 

 

 

 

 

lolno 

 

 Because you think that bonds can quickly destroy an airline shows you have no skill.

How?