One search.
More inventory.

Both, and they are not the same thing. EmpTleg, one word, is the name of this search engine, at emptleg.com. An empty leg, two words, is the flight itself: a private jet repositioning without passengers. So you search EmpTleg to find empty leg flights. If a search engine sent you here after correcting emptleg to empty leg, you are in the right place.

An empty leg is any flight a private jet makes without passengers: heading home after a drop-off, repositioning for the next pickup, or flying in empty to start a trip. They happen before trips as often as after, and you’ll also see them called repositioning flights, ferry flights, or one-way private jet deals. The flight is happening anyway, so rather than fly empty, operators sell those flights at deep discounts: typically 35% to 80% off the cost of booking the same flight as a charter, often several thousand dollars in savings.

That’s deliberate. Aircraft photos go out of date: interiors get refurbished, paint gets redone, aircraft change hands, and many operators run floating fleets where the aircraft assigned to a trip changes. On many charter sites the beautiful photo beside a listing is a representative image of the type, not the aircraft that shows up. We’d rather point you to the person who knows: the operator’s formal quote includes photos of the specific aircraft you are buying.

Empty legs are one way, and departure time usually follows the operator’s schedule, with some flexibility but not unlimited. Once confirmed they are generally reliable, because the underlying flight usually has to happen regardless; if the operator’s schedule shifts they will often work to keep yours intact, sometimes even upgrading you to a different aircraft. It runs both directions, so a little flexibility on your end helps. And expect the price to reflect what it is: an entire private aircraft to yourself, at a fraction of charter pricing, never the price of an airline ticket.

Legs move with the operator’s schedule. A ±10-day window and a departure or arrival radius let EmpTleg match aircraft that are already moving close to where, and when, you want to fly. Widening the radius around your arrival is the trick that surprises people: an aircraft repositioning to a field sixty miles from where you are going is still going roughly your way, and the operator will often extend the leg to your real destination for far less than a full charter, because for them it is a short addition to a flight already being made. On long-distance legs, weigh a short drive against what you are saving before ruling anything out.

Copilot is EmpTleg’s AI search advisor. Describe a trip in plain words, for example “four of us, San Diego to Las Vegas next Friday”, and it searches the live empty legs from qualified charter operators, nearby airports and dates included, and explains which ones fit. Free visitors get the matching flights and a short answer on which fit best. Basic and Premium add Copilot’s full guidance: why each flight fits, what to ask the operator, and whether the aircraft suits your group, bags, range and cabin. Copilot never quotes, books or contacts an operator: you contact the operator directly.

Most “free” empty-leg sites are lead forms: your trip request is sold to brokers, quotes come back with commissions built in, and listings are often one operator’s inventory or already sold. EmpTleg is a live search across many verified operators, refreshed several times a day, with flexible-date and nearby-airport matching that surfaces legs exact-match sites miss. You book direct with the operator at the operator’s price. We take no commission and never touch the booking. A fair test for any empty leg site: does it hand you the operator, or does it quote you? If you can’t tell who you are buying from, someone is standing between you and the aircraft, whatever the site calls itself.

Exact posted prices are revealed to subscribers. Where an operator hasn’t posted one, you’ll see “Call for price”, the operator quotes directly.

Yes, timing follows the operator’s schedule, and a posted leg can change or sell at any moment. Treat every listing as an opportunity, not a guarantee. Confirm details directly with the operator and be ready to book: serious inquiries get answered, while after-hours or lowball requests may not.

Licensed charter operators. EmpTleg is a search and alert service, your flight is arranged with, and operated by, the operator. We’re paid by your subscription, never by your flight: no brokering, no markups, no steering.

Built by aviation professionals: AmeriCharter has worked private aviation since 2004, and those years of operator relationships and market knowledge go into every listing, a curated source, not a directory of everything.