21 empty leg flights in Illinois this week
Updated Oct 31, 1 AM CDT · 146 legs posted in the last 7 days · 148 expired
Legs that touch Illinois at either end and can depart today or within the next six days, judged in each flight's local time. 68 more are listed for later dates.
42 empty legs are departing Illinois right now and 47 are arriving, across 12 airports: 20 light jets, 42 midsize and 27 heavy jets. 21 can leave within the next six days. Every price is an estimated total; you see one final price before you book.
Cities in Illinois
Busiest airports in Illinois right now
Legs touching each field on the board, either direction.
Departing Illinois
Soonest first. Every row opens the full listing.
The soonest 20 of 42 legs departing Illinois are listed here. Search the whole board for the rest.
Arriving in Illinois
Legs ending in Illinois, soonest first.
The soonest 10 of 47 legs arriving in Illinois are listed here. Search the whole board for the rest.
Not the dates you need?
Set the route and we email you as soon as another Illinois empty leg posts.
How empty legs in Illinois work
An empty leg is a repositioning flight. A jet that dropped its passengers in Illinois has to fly back to base, or fly out to its next job, and the operator would rather sell the flight than fly the cabin empty. The price is for the whole aircraft, not per seat, and it is a fraction of a normal charter for the same aircraft, same crew, same operator.
The route and the date are set by the aircraft's schedule, not yours. A listing that shows a date with no time means the operator has not fixed the departure yet; you settle it with them when you request. Legs appear anywhere from weeks to a day ahead and can be withdrawn when the operator's plans change.
UpLeg lists these legs free of charge. You request one, we confirm one final total with the operator before you agree to anything, and you pay once, to the operator or to UpLeg as your quote says. There is no membership, no deposit to ask and no card on file. Fixed dates or a round trip are a charter: ask for a quote and we come back with one total for the whole aircraft.
More in the FAQ, or read how UpLeg works.
Questions about Illinois empty legs
How many empty legs are flying in Illinois right now?
89 empty legs are departing or arriving at a Illinois airport right now, listed by the operators flying them and refreshed through the day. Legs post and disappear daily, so the count changes; every row on this page opens its full listing.
Which Illinois cities and airports have empty legs?
Today's Illinois legs touch Chicago, through Chicago Executive Airport (PWK), Dupage Airport (DPA), Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW), St Louis Regional Airport (ALN), St Louis Downtown Airport (CPS), Chicago O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Aurora Municipal Airport (AUZ) and Chicago Rockford International Airport (RFD). Each listing names its exact airport, and each city has its own page with a free alert.
What does an empty leg in Illinois cost?
Today's Illinois legs are estimated at $3,750 to $38,500 for the whole aircraft, with estimates marked on each listing. Every price on the board is an estimated range. When you request a leg we confirm it with the operator and you get one final price before you book. You pay once, to the operator or to UpLeg; your quote says which.
What happens if the operator cancels the empty leg?
Operators occasionally reschedule or cancel. Whatever you paid the operator is refunded under their terms, and we help you chase it. Anything you paid UpLeg is refunded in full. Set a free alert at flyupleg.com/alerts and we email you the moment a matching leg posts.
Empty legs in other states
By time
More about empty legs in Illinois
| Departing Illinois | 42 empty legs |
|---|---|
| Arriving in Illinois | 47 empty legs |
| Can depart within six days | 21 legs |
| Airports with legs today | 12, led by Chicago Executive Airport (PWK), Dupage Airport (DPA) and Chicago Midway International Airport (MDW) |
| Cities with legs today | 1: Chicago |
| Cabin classes flying | Light jet, midsize, super midsize, heavy and ultra long range |
| Operator-listed prices | 18 of 89 legs; the other 71 carry a UpLeg estimate, marked as one |
| Board refresh | Every 30 minutes, from the operators' own listings |
| Price basis | The whole aircraft, not a seat; an estimated total until one final price is confirmed with you |
Every figure here is counted from the legs on this page at the moment it loaded, and the board is updated every 30 minutes from the operators' own listings, so the numbers move through the day. This is important because a count on one page is a snapshot, not a schedule: a leg can post or be withdrawn between two visits, and the newest listing change is stamped below. Whether a price is operator-listed or a UpLeg estimate is essential to know before you compare two legs, so the table counts both.
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How to book an empty leg in Illinois
- Step 1. Pick a leg. Open any row above for the aircraft, the seats, the date or departure window and the estimated total. A date with no time means the operator has not fixed the departure yet; you settle it with them when you request.
- Step 2. Request it. Add your name, email and mobile number and click Request. No account is needed. You get a reference straight away. There is no deposit, no membership and no card on file, and a request is not a booking: nothing is owed until you have agreed to a total.
- Step 3. Get one final price. We confirm availability and the total with the operator and send you one final price for the whole aircraft, with the operator named, before you agree to anything.
- Step 4. Confirm with the operator. Agree to a short set of terms on your booking page and pay once, to the operator or to UpLeg as your quote says. The departure time and the meeting point at the airport are settled with the operator.
- Step 5. Or set an alert. If nothing on this page fits, set a free alert for Illinois and we email you when a leg posts.
Empty leg, charter or jet card?
An empty leg fits flexible dates on a route an aircraft is already flying; a charter fits fixed dates, round trips and groups; a jet card is prepaid hours, which UpLeg does not sell. The table compares the three on what you buy, what you pay, what you commit to and who flies you.
| Aspect | Empty leg | Private jet charter | Jet card |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you buy | The whole aircraft on a flight it was making anyway | The whole aircraft for a trip built around you | Prepaid hours or dollars, drawn down per flight |
| Price | Up to 75% under retail charter; one final price before you book | Retail, quoted per trip; one final price before you book | Fixed hourly rates, paid in advance |
| Route and dates | Set by the aircraft's schedule | Yours | Yours, with the program's notice period |
| Commitment to ask | None: no deposit, no card on file | None: a quote is free | A prepaid balance, often on a term |
| Who flies you | An FAA-certificated Part 135 operator, named before you pay | An FAA-certificated Part 135 operator, named before you pay | The program's own or partner operators |
| Can it change | Yes: the operator can withdraw the leg if its schedule changes | Rarely: the trip is yours once confirmed | Rarely |
| Best for | Flexible dates on a common route, one direction | Fixed dates, round trips, groups, unusual routes | Frequent flyers who want a fixed rate |
| On UpLeg | The live board at flyupleg.com/flights | A free quote at flyupleg.com/charter | Not offered |
The legs on this page by cabin class, counted from the rows above. Cabin class is the board's own grouping from the aircraft the operator named, so a leg without a named aircraft is counted on the page but not in this table.
| Cabin class | Legs now | Operator-listed | Example route |
|---|---|---|---|
| Light jet | 20 | 0 | Naples to Chicago |
| Midsize | 26 | 12 | Chicago to Miami |
| Super midsize | 16 | 5 | Chicago to Cleveland |
| Heavy | 17 | 1 | Palm Beach to Chicago |
| Ultra long range | 10 | 0 | Chicago to Des Moines |
Key terms
These terms mean the same thing on every UpLeg page and in every quote. On the board, listed means that the operator published the price itself, and estimated means that UpLeg computed the range and marked it as an estimate. Part 135 refers to the FAA rules an operator flies under, and Part 295 refers to the Department of Transportation rules UpLeg works under as an air charter broker. This is important because the operator, not UpLeg, flies the aircraft and holds operational control of every flight.
- Empty leg
- An empty leg is a private jet flight that has to happen anyway, with nobody on board, because the aircraft is repositioning after one charter or before the next. Operators sell that flight for the whole aircraft at a fraction of the charter price, on the aircraft's own route and dates. More on empty legs
- Estimated total
- An estimated total is UpLeg's estimate, shown as a range and marked as an estimate, for an empty leg the operator posted without a price. Every booking gets one final price for the whole aircraft before you agree to anything. More on estimated totals
- Operator-listed price
- An operator-listed price is the price the operator itself published for an empty leg. On the UpLeg board it is shown as listed; a leg without one carries an estimated total instead. More on operator-listed prices
- Cabin class
- Cabin class is the size grouping of a private jet: turboprop, light jet, midsize, super midsize, heavy and ultra long range. It sets the seat count, the range and the price band, and it is the cabin filter on the UpLeg board. More on cabin classes
- Part 135 operator
- A Part 135 operator is an air carrier the FAA has certificated under 14 CFR Part 135 to fly on-demand charter with its own aircraft, pilots and maintenance program. Every empty leg and charter on UpLeg is flown by one. More on Part 135 operators
- Air charter broker
- An air charter broker is a company that arranges flights on aircraft it does not operate, under 14 CFR Part 295. UpLeg is an air charter broker: every flight it arranges is flown by a Part 135 operator that is named before you pay and that holds operational control of the flight. More on air charter brokers
Terms as of