Start your passenger airline: aircraft, routes and schedules

Your first passenger airline, from aircraft to scheduled flights

Start with one suitable aircraft and one route. Fly the route to verify it, then build a schedule for passive income. Plan a hub as your airline grows, especially for maintenance, and expand into more routes once the first operation is working.

Before you start

This guide assumes you already have an airline in flyLAT and permission to buy aircraft, manage routes, and create schedules. Sign in to the correct airline before spending company funds.

A budget for your first aircraft, with money left for operating costs and maintenance.
An airport pair you want to serve and an aircraft capable of flying between them.
A connected simulator setup for your first passenger flight.

The setup order: buy an aircraft → create a route → fly and verify it → publish a schedule → review and expand. Choose a hub alongside this process; it does not need to be your first purchase.

1. Buy your first aircraft: new or used

Open Airline → Airline Operations → Marketplace. You can buy a new aircraft or choose one from the used market. Both are valid ways to start a passenger airline.

Compare new aircraft and used aircraft within your budget.
Check passenger capacity, range, and suitability for the airports you intend to use. For a used aircraft, also review its condition and maintenance information before committing.
Review the purchase details and complete the purchase when you are happy with the aircraft and cost.
Open Fleet and confirm the aircraft belongs to your airline. Check its location and availability before planning the first flight.

Keep a working reserve

A larger aircraft is not automatically a better first purchase. Leave enough funds to operate and maintain it, and match its capacity to the route you intend to serve.

2. Create a passenger route

Passenger operations need a route. Open Airline → Airline Operations → Route Management and create the airport pair you want to serve.

Choose the departure and destination airports. Use the Airport Directory to check the airports before you commit.
Review the route details, including the flight numbers and ticket price shown in the form.
Save the route and check that it appears in your airline's route list.

One route covers both directions

Creating Airport A ↔ Airport B gives you a route for A → B and B → A. You do not need to create a second route just for the return journey.

For example, a London Heathrow (EGLL) ↔ Amsterdam Schiphol (EHAM) route covers both outbound and return flights. This is an illustration, not a recommendation for your aircraft or budget.

A route is not a timetable. It defines the airport pair. You will still add the individual outbound and return flights when you build the schedule.

3. Plan a hub for your growing airline

You will want a hub as you develop your airline, but it is not the first thing to prioritise when getting your initial passenger operation running. Start by choosing a sensible base and learning how your aircraft and route perform.

Open Airline → Airline Operations → Facilities to review hubs and maintenance facilities. They become particularly useful when you need to organise maintenance around a growing fleet.

Choose a location your aircraft will regularly visit.
Review the facility's cost, capacity, and maintenance slots before buying or expanding it.
Plan time for aircraft to reach the facility and receive maintenance between flying commitments.

Keep the initial investment proportionate to your fleet. Build the maintenance network around the operation you actually have.

4. Fly your first route and verify it

Before scheduling the route, complete a passenger flight linked to it. The current schedule builder requires routes to be active, verified, and not archived.

Open Create Flight and choose Passenger.
Select your airline's route and a suitable company aircraft. Check the aircraft's location and the direction you intend to fly.
Connect your simulator, follow the flight setup, and fly the passenger service to its destination.
Complete the flight in flyLAT and allow its completion to process. Landing in the simulator alone is not the final step.
Return to Route Management and confirm the route shows Verified.

If it still shows Unverified, check that the flight completed successfully and was a passenger flight linked to the correct company route. A flight between the same airports without that route association is not enough.

5. Build and publish a schedule for passive income

With an aircraft and a verified route ready, open Airline → Airline Operations → Schedules. A schedule turns your route into a planned, recurring operation.

Create a schedule template with a clear name, then add an aircraft schedule inside it.
Choose the aircraft and add flights on your verified route for the operating days you want.
Include the return journey or a connected onward flight. Each flight should start where the previous one ends.
Leave enough time for flying, turnaround, and maintenance. Resolve any validation errors or aircraft conflicts shown by the builder.
Save your work, then return to the template and use Publish. Check every aircraft schedule inside it before confirming.
Choose the active dates offered by the portal, confirm publication, and check the schedule's status and upcoming flights.

Saving a draft does not start the operation

Publish the template to put its schedules into service. The portal currently requires at least 14 days of lead time, so use the earliest available date shown rather than expecting flights to begin immediately. Publishing applies to every aircraft schedule inside the template and locks it from builder edits.

Scheduled operations are the next step towards passive income, but they still need oversight. Review income, operating costs, aircraft availability, and maintenance instead of assuming every scheduled flight will be profitable.

6. Grow beyond your first route

One route is a useful starting point. Several well-chosen routes can improve aircraft utilisation and give your airline more opportunities to earn, provided you can serve them profitably.

Review the first route's results and your Finances.
Look for another airport pair that suits your aircraft and leaves room in its timetable.
Create and verify the additional route, then plan it into a suitable schedule.
Add aircraft or maintenance capacity when the operation and available funds justify the cost.

More routes do not guarantee more profit. Expand at a pace your fleet, schedule, and cash balance can support.

Ready-to-operate checklist

Your passenger aircraft appears in Fleet and is available for the planned operation.
Your airport pair exists as one route covering both directions.
You have completed a linked passenger flight and the route shows Verified.
Your timetable includes the required outbound and return or onward flights.
The schedule template is published with the intended active dates, not left as a draft.
You have retained operating funds and considered where maintenance will take place.

Common first-airline questions

Do I need two routes for a return service?: No. One created route covers both directions. Add both flights to your schedule as needed.
Why is my route missing from the schedule builder?: Check that it belongs to the selected airline, is active, is not archived, and shows Verified.
Why is my saved schedule not operating today?: Check that the template is published, its active date has arrived, and flights are planned for that day. New schedules require lead time.
Should I buy a hub before my first aircraft?: Prioritise getting a suitable aircraft and route working. Plan your hub for the network you intend to build, with maintenance in mind.
Will adding routes automatically increase profit?: No. More suitable routes can help, but compare revenue with operating and maintenance costs before expanding further.

Next: build your first schedule

Ready to turn your verified route into a weekly timetable? Follow Create your first passenger schedule for the exact controls, a worked return-flight example, validation, and publishing.

Explore the full portal handbook

Continue with the portal and airline management handbook for guides to fleet, facilities, finances, staff, cargo, flying and everyday tools.