FIFO Aircraft Selection and Passenger Capacity

Most poor FIFO aircraft decisions come from starting with headcount. A crew of 120 suggests a narrowbody jet, but if the destination is a 1,400 metre unsealed strip, the answer is two turboprop rotations or a different airport with road transfer, and the sooner that is established the better the program.

So the sequence is: destination feasibility first, then payload and baggage, then headcount and timing. Aviall Group sources across a broad operator base rather than operating aircraft, which means we can follow that order honestly instead of steering you toward a fleet we happen to own.

• Destination, runway length, surface, width, pavement strength, approach aids, fire coverage, fuel
• Payload, crew weight plus baggage, tooling and any freight travelling with the rotation
• Sector, distance, and whether a fuel stop or second crew becomes necessary
• Timing, departure and return windows, and whether they fit crew duty limits
• Headcount, the real manifest, not the maximum roster

Turboprops are the workhorse of constrained-destination FIFO. Types in the Dash 8, ATR, Saab and Metro families operate comfortably from shorter and unsealed runways, tolerate remote aerodromes with limited infrastructure, and are efficient on the sub-two-hour sectors that dominate Australian resource routes.

They are the correct answer more often than procurement teams expect. For a 40 to 60 person crew into a mine strip, a turboprop rotation will usually beat a jet on both feasibility and cost per seat, because the jet either cannot use the strip or has to fly to a distant sealed airport with a long road transfer at the end.

• Best for, short or unsealed strips, smaller specialist crews, high-frequency short sectors
• Typical seats, 30 to 70 depending on type and configuration
• Strengths, strip tolerance, low turnaround overhead, good regional availability
• Trade-offs, slower on long sectors, more limited hold volume than a jet

Regional jets in the Embraer E-Jet and CRJ families sit in the useful middle of FIFO work. They deliver jet speed and cabin comfort on longer sectors, carry useful hold volume for crew baggage and tooling, and still operate from many sealed regional airports that a larger narrowbody would struggle with.

They suit mid-size rotations, roughly 70 to 100 people, and interstate crew sourcing where sector length makes turboprop timing awkward against a shift-change window.

• Best for, mid-size crews, longer sectors, interstate crew origins
• Typical seats, 70 to 100
• Strengths, speed, hold capacity, sealed regional airport access
• Trade-offs, requires sealed runway and better aerodrome infrastructure

Narrowbody jets in the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 families are the efficient answer for full swings and shutdown surges into sealed regional airports. On a well-filled rotation they deliver the lowest cost per seat available in FIFO work, and their hold capacity handles substantial crew baggage and tooling.

The constraint is the airport. Runway length, pavement strength, apron space, screening capability and fire category all have to support the type, which is why narrowbody FIFO tends to run into established regional airports rather than private strips.

• Best for, full swings, shutdown surges, long sectors, lowest cost per seat when filled
• Typical seats, 100 to 189 depending on type and configuration
• Strengths, cost efficiency at high load factor, generous hold capacity
• Trade-offs, needs a capable sealed airport at both ends

Large mobilisations, project starts and major shutdowns sometimes exceed what one narrowbody can move within the available window. Two options exist: a widebody where the airport can genuinely accept it, or a coordinated multi-aircraft wave where several rotations are sequenced so crews arrive in usable groups rather than trickling in over a day.

Waves are more common in Australian resource work because few site-serving airports support widebody operations. Sequencing them properly, including ground transport capacity at the far end, is the difference between a mobilisation and a queue.

FIFO crews travel with more than a suitcase. Personal baggage for a two-week swing, PPE, boots, tooling, instruments and occasionally spares or consumables all consume hold volume and payload, and the honest constraint is often volume rather than weight.

Where tooling or freight travels with the crew, tell us before aircraft selection rather than after. Payload trade-offs on longer sectors are real: an aircraft carrying full fuel for a long leg may not be able to carry a full manifest plus heavy baggage, and dangerous goods such as lithium batteries, aerosols or fuels have declaration requirements that must be handled properly.

• Confirm baggage allowance in kilograms per person, in writing, with the quote
• Declare tooling, spares and consumables at requirement stage
• Expect dangerous goods to require declaration and, in some cases, separate freight
• Longer sectors can trade payload against fuel. Plan for it rather than discover it