What you need to know about deicing before you get the bill

If you thought $177 for a chicken sandwich was expensive, let’s talk about deicing! Some fractional and jet card programs include deicing. Others cover deicing bills up to a specific amount, and then other programs pass along the cost to the end user – that’s you. Ad hoc charters are typically a pass-along to the charterer. While typical bills could be in the low single-digit thousands, industry players recently shared about their worst – or perhaps better said, your worst deicing bills and how a good provider can minimize them.

Daniel Harris, managing partner of Los Angeles-based charter broker Ironbird Partners, recently asked on social media, “What’s the worst deicing bill you have seen, and what airport?

FlyAdvanced Aviation Group Vice President of Operations Rhonda Smith posted, “I’ve seen over $30k twice in my 22-year career. Once in CYYZ (Toronto) and once in ASE (Aspen). Both tails were outside and a solid block of ice.”

In one case, the flight cost was less than the deicing charge.

GrandView Aviation Charter Sales Supervisor Etienne Lamothe, a pilot, responded, “30k on a G650…The trip…cost less than (than the deicing).”

Aircraft management and charter operator FlyHouse Chief Aviation Officer Suran Wijayawardana posted, “42k on our G550 out of KTVL (South Lake Tahoe).

He continued, “For context, (the) average fuel cost that year was around $5.80 per gallon. Apparently, Glycol goes up even more exponentially $30 per gallon. The funny part was that they sprayed us with the equivalent of a garden hose! Will never forget it. The broker paid 34k for the subsequent leg and ended up splitting it with them.”

He concluded, “I consider (aircraft deicing fees) one of the biggest rackets in our business. Along with TIA coffee makers installed on aircraft.”

Hard to budget

One broker says the entire issue isn’t simple.

Deicing costs vary from airport to airport based on regulations and the deicing fluids used.

Deicing is also charged by a gallon of fluid, so the more they use, the more you pay.

The bill for deicing is passed from the FBO to the operator and the flight provider.

“We don’t wait for billing departments to process everything. We reach out right away. It’s much easier if the client gets the bill within two weeks of their flight,” says Kevin Diemar of Unity Jets.

When you agree to an on-demand charter contract or sign up for a jet card that doesn’t cover deicing, you also agree to pay for deicing.

What if your airplane wasn’t deiced and you are billed?

Or more specifically, the airplane wasn’t deiced at the airport where you departed.

Brokers say they sometimes receive deicing bills from the airport where the airplane originated or arrived.

For example, an operator flies a repositioning flight from Denver to Aspen.

It then flies the passengers from Aspen to Chicago.

The operator bills the broker for deicing in Denver.

The operator could also bill the broker for deicing after the jet arrives in Chicago.

That could be because the jet was then returning to base.

The leg from Chicago was part of the trip the broker purchased in this scenario.

In other words, if you had not chartered our aircraft for the Aspen to Chicago flight, there would have been no deicing in Denver or Chicago.

Brokers and operators say they try to mitigate expensive deicing.

One solution is to overnight the airplane in a hangar when they anticipate lousy weather.

“It’s a known cost versus unknown,” says charter broker Monarch Air Group CEO David Gitman.

Hangar costs are typically around $1,000 for lights and midsize jets.

However, according to Gitman, hangar space isn’t always available.

He says they try to get the post-flight charges to customers within a week.

However, he says it took two months to get a final invoice in one case.

Typical deicing bills range from $2,000 to $10,000 based on jet size and airport.

Gitman says the worst bill he recalls was in the $20,000 range for a large cabin Gulfstream jet.

One pilot on the LinkedIn thread tells about a $45,000 bill for a UPS DC-8 in Boston.

No free lunch

If you do much winter weather flying, there’s good news.

You have options.

Some jet card and fractional programs include deicing.

However, those that don’t say it’s not a clear-cut benefit.

Monarch’s Gitman says that, like most things in private aviation, there is no free lunch—chicken sandwiches included.

Monarch’s Gitman says, “I have customers asking, ‘Why don’t you include deicing?’ I tell them you’re paying for it one way or another. Programs that include deicing are simply spreading the cost across all their customers, so customers who never have deicing are paying for those that do.”

On the other hand, FlyExclusive includes deicing for its Jet Club and fractional customers.

It spent $471,000 on deicing in 2023 and has paid out $441,000 this year.

Last year, the fifth-largest charter/fractional operator flew 55,211 hours.

That translates into $8.53 per hour, so perhaps spreading the cost over a large group does make sense.

Comparing the options

Paid subscribers of Private Jet Card Comparisons can find which programs include deicing. The information is in Column BM and is part of our DECIDER CUSTOM ANALYSIS.

It’s one of 65 variables to compare jet card, membership, or fractional programs.

Our QUICK COMPARE FLIGHT PRICING also enables you to compare flight costs of programs that include deicing versus those that do not.

Currently, 16 North American fractional and jet card providers include deicing in their hourly pricing.

Remember, the decision to de-ice – or not – is from your pilots.

Most importantly, your flight provider should inform you about possible post-flight charges.

However, when you sign the charter or jet card agreement, you are probably agreeing to deicing charges unless it stipulates that you don’t have to pay them.

Either way, deicing is another reason it always makes sense to compare options – what’s included and what’s extra.