The Ultimate Guide to Purchasing and Scheduling Aircraft in Airline Manager (AMS)
Expanding your fleet is the most exciting part of Airline Manager (AMS), but it can also be the most complex. One wrong setting can lead to empty seats and drained bank accounts. Follow this step-by-step guide to ensure every new aircraft you buy becomes a profit-making machine.
1. Purchasing Your Aircraft
To start growing your fleet, navigate to the Aircraft Market in the left-hand navigation menu. You’ll find three tabs offering different ways to view available models.
Research: Use the Info screen to dive into specific performance data and cabin configurations.
Comparison: Use the Market table tab to compare multiple aircraft side-by-side.
Buying: Once you’ve selected a model, a list of available aircraft will appear. If the price fits within your budget, simply hit the Purchase button.
2. Initial Configuration (Charter vs. Scheduled)
Before your plane can fly, you need to tell the game how you plan to use it. Navigate to Fleet in the left-hand menu to see your hangar.
Flight Designation: By default, new aircraft are set for Charter flights. Click the Charter/Scheduled icon to toggle to Scheduled mode.
Note: Once a schedule is activated, this toggle is disabled, so choose correctly from the start!
Assigning a Group: If you are running scheduled flights, go to Flight Schedule and create a Group. This "link" connects your aircraft to its routes and is vital for managing maintenance and transfers later on.
3. Selecting a Base and Adding Hubs
Your Base Airport is your airline’s foundation. It defines your nationality and cannot be changed or deleted. However, to expand, you must add Hubs.
How to Add: Right-click any airport on the map. A context popup will appear; click the highlighted icon to add it to your Hub List.
The Home Advantage: Your aircraft receives significant discounts on maintenance and taxes when its "Home Airport" matches the hub it is flying from.
Management: Go to Home > Airline Hubs to track your weekly upkeep fees and see when your next payment is due.
4. The Transfer Flight: Bringing the Bird Home
New aircraft are parked at the manufacturer's airport. You must use a Transfer Flight to move it to your hub.
No Limits: Transfer flights have no distance limitations—they can fly anywhere in the world in one go.
Requirements: These flights take real time (based on cruise speed) and require fuel and pilot costs, so plan your budget accordingly!
5. Building Flight Plans and Pricing
A Flight Plan is the blueprint for a specific route. To build them efficiently:
Select your Group in the left filter panel.
Go to the Dashboard tab to see your hub and aircraft range on the map.
Create Round-Trips: Left-click a destination airport and click the green "Create Round-Trip" icon.
The 15-20% Pricing Rule: Navigate to the Flight Numbers tab. Because AMS supports up to four transfer flights per passenger, we recommend lowering ticket prices to 15-20% of the default maximum.
Pro-Tip: Use the Global Price Factor in Settings to calculate these prices automatically for your entire fleet. Don't forget to hit Submit!
6. Mastering the Weekly Schedule
The final step is filling your Schedule Calendar. This is where you "paint" your aircraft’s week.
Manual Entry: Use the "Add Schedule" button to pick a flight number and assign a day and time.
Turnaround Time: The game visualizes the time needed between flights, but you are responsible for setting the departure time. Ensure there is enough gap for the plane to prep!
The Shortcut: Use the "Day Copy" tool to instantly duplicate a successful Monday schedule across the rest of the week.
Success Checklist
Before you toggle your schedule to "Active":
[ ] Is the aircraft at its Home Airport?
[ ] Is the Aircraft Type in the Group correct?
[ ] Have you lowered prices to the 15-20% range?
[ ] Does your schedule allow for Turnaround Time?
Ready for takeoff! Enjoy seeing those profits roll in.
