A large cabin business jet with oval windows parked on the ramp in clear weather, photographed from ahead of the wing

SABE to TNCM 3,169 nm N 354 degrees true

Private Jet CharterBuenos Airesto St Maarten

3,169 nautical miles direct. About 7h 09m nonstop in a heavy jet. Operators bid on this leg without knowing who is flying it.

Get free quote

Great circle

3,169nm

5,870 km, 3,647 statute miles

Initial track

354°T N

Departing SABE toward TNCM

Nonstop block time

7h 09m

In a heavy jet, the smallest reference class that flies it nonstop

Clock change

-1h

St Maarten against Buenos Aires, year round

The leg

Buenos Aires to St Maarten

The great circle track from Buenos Aires to St Maarten runs 3,169 nautical miles on an initial heading of 354 degrees true. A heavy jet covers it nonstop in roughly 7h 09m, before winds.

At this range the question stops being which cabin you prefer and becomes which aircraft can physically do it. Most of the light and midsize market cannot, and the ones that can will be doing it with a technical stop. St Maarten runs 1 hour behind of Buenos Aires year round, which is worth building into the schedule at both ends.

You do not need a large cabin for the distance. A Gulfstream G450 in the heavy jet class covers it nonstop with margin left over. A further 9 aircraft can do it nonstop on a good day, and those are the quotes worth reading carefully. A marginal leg becomes a fuel stop the moment the winds turn, the cabin fills, or the departure field is hot and high. 21 of the aircraft we track cannot make it without stopping at all, which does not rule them out. A stop on a cheaper airframe sometimes still wins on total cost, and the bid comparison will show you whether it does.

Book range figures assume long range cruise, standard reserves and a stated payload. Load the cabin, add bags, put the departure field at elevation on a hot afternoon, and the real number comes down. We treat anything above roughly 80 percent of book range as a leg that needs the operator to confirm against the specific tail number rather than the brochure.

Orthographic projection, great circle track Static plot

Aircraft

What flies this leg, and how fast

Block time and nonstop capability across the classes for 3,169 nautical miles. Times are planning estimates in still air.

Aircraft comparison for Buenos Aires to St Maarten
Aircraft	Class	Seats	Block time	Book range	This leg
Cessna Citation M2 Gen2	Very Light Jet	6	8h 21m	1,550 nm	Fuel stop
Embraer Phenom 300E	Light Jet	8	7h 19m	2,010 nm	Fuel stop
Cessna Citation XLS+	Midsize Jet	9	7h 41m	2,100 nm	Fuel stop
Bombardier Challenger 350	Super Midsize Jet	9	7h 14m	3,200 nm	Fuel stop
Gulfstream G450	Heavy Jet	13	7h 09m	4,350 nm	Nonstop
Gulfstream G650ER	Ultra Long Range Jet	14	6h 58m	7,500 nm	Nonstop

Airports

Which runway you actually use

Departing Buenos Aires. Most charter traffic uses Aeroparque Jorge Newbery (SABE / AEP). The credible alternates are Ezeiza International (EZE) and El Palomar (Palomar). Which one you leave from is worth deciding on ground time rather than on the map, because twenty minutes of extra driving often buys a cheaper ramp and a faster departure.

Arriving St Maarten. Most charter traffic uses Princess Juliana International (TNCM / SXM). The credible alternates are L Esperance Grand Case (SFG). Pick the one closest to where you are actually going. The airport with the famous name is frequently the wrong answer.

Runway length, ramp space and operating hours at the arrival field decide the aircraft as often as range does. Have the operator confirm all three against the tail number they are offering.

Airport	ICAO	IATA	Metro	End	Role
Aeroparque Jorge Newbery	SABE	AEP	Buenos Aires	Departure	Preferred
Ezeiza International	SAEZ	EZE	Buenos Aires	Departure	Customs
El Palomar	SADP	Palomar	Buenos Aires	Departure	Alternate
Princess Juliana International	TNCM	SXM	St Maarten	Arrival	Preferred
L Esperance Grand Case	TFFG	SFG	St Maarten	Arrival	Alternate

Cost

What moves the number

Any site quoting you a fixed price for this leg is guessing. These are the components that decide it.

Positioning. Where the aircraft sits when you call. If it is already on your departure ramp you pay for your legs only. If it has to fly in empty and fly home afterwards, someone pays for that, and it is you.
Daily minimum. Most operators bill a minimum number of flight hours per day the aircraft is away. A short leg with a three night stay can price higher than a long leg that returns the same day.
Crew duty. A crew has a legal duty limit. Cross enough time zones or depart late enough and the trip needs a second crew or an overnight, and both cost money.
Ramp and handling. Landing fees, ramp fees, overnight parking and the FBO handling charge vary enormously between fields in the same metro.
Peak days. Operators apply surcharges around the predictable weekends. Thanksgiving Sunday, the Super Bowl, Art Basel, the Fourth of July and the ski season change of week all price differently.
Fuel and stops. A technical stop costs fuel to climb back to altitude, a landing fee, handling, and forty five minutes to an hour of ground time.
International handling. Customs, immigration, overflight permits, landing permits and a local handling agent. On some routings the permits need days of lead time.

Our fee sits on top of the operator price as its own line, visible, so you can see both halves. Send the trip and the operators bid against each other on all of the above at once.

Timing

Season, weather and the clock

St Maarten sits in the tropics, where the practical seasons are wet and dry rather than hot and cold. Afternoon convective weather is the routine cause of delay, so morning departures hold their schedule more reliably.

Atlantic hurricane season runs June through November. It rarely cancels a trip outright, but it does move departure windows, and travel insurance is worth reading properly rather than skimming.

The forward fuselage and cockpit of a business jet in silhouette on the ramp at dusk, with runway edge lights and a pink and blue horizon behind — AEP to SXM

Questions

AEP to SXM

A white and blue business jet in cruise flight above red desert terrain seen from above and ahead — Representative cabin and ramp

How long is a private jet flight from Buenos Aires to St Maarten?

The great circle distance is 3,169 nautical miles, which is about 5,870 km. A heavy jet covers it nonstop in roughly 7h 09m block to block. A heavy jet flies the distance in about 7h 09m, and a light jet in about 7h 19m if it can make it without stopping. These are planning estimates in still air and exclude winds and air traffic routing.

Can a light jet fly Buenos Aires to St Maarten nonstop?

No. This leg needs about 161 percent of a light jet's published range, so plan on a fuel stop or move up to a class with the legs for it. The smallest aircraft that does it nonstop with margin is the Gulfstream G450.

Which airport should I use in St Maarten?

Princess Juliana International (TNCM) handles most charter traffic. The alternates are L Esperance Grand Case (SFG). Choose on ground time to your final address rather than on the name you recognise.

Do I clear customs on a private flight from Buenos Aires to St Maarten?

Yes. Crossing a border on a private aircraft still means customs and immigration at both ends, but it happens at the private terminal rather than in a terminal queue, and it is usually a matter of minutes. The operator files the passenger manifest in advance, so passport details are needed before departure rather than at the airport. Some routings also need landing or overflight permits with days of lead time, which is worth raising early.

What does a private jet from Buenos Aires to St Maarten cost?

We do not publish a figure, because a fixed number for this route would be invented. The dominant variable is where the aircraft is parked when you call, not the aircraft type. Positioning legs, daily minimums, crew duty, ramp fees, peak day surcharges and taxes all move the total. Send the trip through the quote form and certificated operators bid against each other on it, sealed, without knowing who you are.

Are empty legs available on this route?

Sometimes. An empty leg exists when an operator has to reposition an aircraft along this track anyway, so the timing is theirs and not yours. They appear and vanish with little notice and get cancelled when the paying trip behind them changes. Flag empty legs on the quote form and we will include any that fit your window, but do not build a fixed commitment around one.

Nearby