Embraer Legacy 600 Charter

The Embraer Legacy 600 is the business-jet conversion of Embraer's ERJ-135 regional airliner — a stretched-fuselage design giving cabin volume that no purpose-built heavy business jet of its era could match. Launched in 2002 and replaced by the Legacy 650 in 2010, around 250 units were built. The type became a fixture of Middle Eastern, Russian and Asian charter fleets, valued for its enormous cabin, three living zones and airliner-derived reliability.

For charter clients the Legacy 600 is the cabin-volume option in the heavy-jet class — a genuine airliner-cabin experience at charter rates below any purpose-designed heavy jet with comparable seat count. It is the aircraft to specify when passenger comfort on longer sectors is decisive and modern avionics are less important.

Cabin dimensions: 42 feet 5 inches long, 6 feet 11 inches wide and 6 feet tall — dramatically longer than any purpose-built heavy business jet, though narrower than a Challenger 605 or Gulfstream G450. Standard layout is a 13-passenger three-zone configuration with forward club-four, mid-cabin club-four and aft three-place divan; charter-common builds carry 14 passengers.

Cabin management on original aircraft is dated; refurbished 600s frequently feature LED lighting, updated cabin displays and Iridium or Ka-band connectivity. Baggage volume is 240 cubic feet in an in-cabin aft compartment accessed from the main cabin — the largest of any heavy jet by a wide margin, and a genuine feature for ski, golf and family missions.

The lavatory is fully enclosed with vanity and belted seat. The galley is forward-right with hot and cold storage, oven and coffee — a full airliner-derived galley.

Twin Rolls-Royce AE 3007A1E engines deliver 7,987 pounds of thrust each. Maximum operating Mach is 0.80; long-range cruise Mach 0.75. Certified ceiling is FL410. NBAA IFR range with eight passengers is 3,400 nautical miles — enough for London to Dubai, Moscow to Dubai, Dubai to Cape Town or transcontinental US non-stop.

Balanced field length at MTOW is 5,614 ft. Landing distance is 2,750 ft. Runway performance is competitive; the ERJ-135 airliner heritage means the airframe is genuinely rugged and unfussy about airport conditions.

Charter hourly rates run $7,200–$9,000 in North America; €7,800–€9,500 in Europe. Empty-leg availability is broad in Middle East and CIS markets, moderate elsewhere. Indicative pricing: London to Dubai from £48,000; Moscow to Dubai from $52,000; Dubai to Bangkok from $58,000; New York to Los Angeles from $42,000.

Against the Legacy 650 the 600 gives up 500 nm of range and modernised avionics at 15 per cent lower cost. Against the Challenger 605 the 600 offers dramatically more cabin length and baggage at similar cost with a narrower cabin cross-section. Against the Falcon 2000 the 600 wins on cabin length and passenger count, loses on speed and range.

Charter the Legacy 600 when cabin length, three-zone configuration and enormous baggage capacity are decisive — 12-passenger corporate travel, family holidays with heavy luggage, or missions where the airliner-derived cabin experience matters more than the newest avionics. It is unique in its class on cabin length per dollar.

Prefer the Legacy 650 for extended range and modern avionics, or a Challenger 605 for a wider cabin cross-section on shorter sectors. For pure cabin volume at heavy-jet charter budgets, however, the 600 is unmatched.