Skip to Content

How Much Do Airplanes Weigh? (With 17 Examples)

Have you ever been on an airplane or seen one flying overhead and wondered how much that airplane weighs?

Airplanes are flown all around the world and they are built in a variety of sizes and weights.

From small private airplanes that are used for flight training to large commercial jumbo jets, people are shocked when they find out the weight of a certain airplane.

In this article, you will see a list of airplanes of various sizes and learn exactly how much they weigh.

jet aircraft with landing gear down

Ultralight Airplanes

Earthstar Thunder Gull

The Thunder Gull is an ultralight airplane that had its first flight in 1987. This airplane is manufactured by Earthstar in California, USA, and is a high-wing aircraft with an engine at the rear.

The Earthstar Thunder Gull has an empty weight of 274 pounds.

Aeromarine Merlin Lite

The Merlin Lite is a high-wing ultralight airplane that has an empty weight of 254 pounds. It has a speed range of 24 to 55 knots, and with the 4.5-gallon fuel tank, the Merlin Lite can stay in the air for about 4 hours.

Light Airplanes (Piston and turboprop)

Cessna 172

First flown in 1955, the Cessna 172 is a four-seat high-wing single-engine aircraft. The Cessna 172 has an empty weight of 1,680 pounds and is one of the most popular single-engine aircraft used for training pilots.

The Cessna Aircraft Corporation has built more C-172s than any other aircraft.

cessna 172 airplane in flight

Diamond DA40

The Diamond DA40 is a low wing single-engine airplane. The Diamond DA40 has an empty weight of 1,746 pounds and a gross weight of 2,646 pounds and can carry four people.

Piper Navajo

The Piper Navajo has an empty weight of 3,390 pounds and a max takeoff weight of 6,500 pounds. The Navajo is a piston twin-engine aircraft that had its first flight in 1964.

piper navajo airplane in flight

Pilatus PC12

Manufactured in Switzerland, the Pilatus PC12 is a single-engine turboprop airplane. The PC12 is used for both passenger and cargo operations.

The empty weight of the PC12 is 5,867 pounds and has a maximum range of 1,635 nautical miles.

Beechcraft King Air 350

Having an empty weight of 9,456 pounds the King Air 350 and carry up to 11 passengers and two crew.

The aircraft is powered by two Pratt & Whitney turboprop engines.

king air 350 aircraft in flight

Light Jets

Citation X

The Cessna Aircraft Company of Wichita Kansas produced the first Citation X in December 1993. With a zero fuel weight (ZFW) of 24,400 pounds, this turbojet can fly at 51,000 feet and is considered a medium-sized business jet.

Citation X video

CRJ 700

The CRJ 700 is built in Canada by Bombardier Incorporated, with an empty weight of 43,200 pounds.

The CRJ 700 can carry up to 78 passengers for a maximum range of 1,702 nautical miles and at a maximum altitude of 41,000 feet.

CHECK OUT  How Many Passengers Does A Boeing 737 Hold?

Citation M2

The Citation M2 is a turbofan-powered light corporate jet. The empty weight of the Citation M2 is 8,400 pounds and has a landing distance of less than 3,000 feet.

image credit: dragunov @ depositphotos.com

Cirrus SF50

Known as the Vision Jet the Cirrus SF50 can be flown by a single pilot. The SF50 is considered to be a very light jet and has an empty weight of 3,572 pounds.

The average price is just under two million dollars and is usually piloted by its owner.

Airplane weight table

Airplane typeEmpty weight (pounds)
Earthstar Thunder Gull274
Aeromarine Merlin Lite254
Cessna 1721,680
Diamond DA402,646
Piper Navajo3,390
Pilatus PC125,867
Beechcraft King Air 3509,456
Citation M28,400
CRJ 70043,200
Citation X24,400
Cirrus SF503,572
Boeing 737-80090,710
Airbus A32082,078
Boeing 767-300194,400
Boeing 777297,300
Boeing 787229,500
Airbus A330-200370,377
Airbus A380814,000

Heavy Jets

Boeing 737-800

As a commercial airliner, the Boeing 737-800 has an empty weight of 90,710 pounds and a max weight of approximately 172,400 pounds and can climb to an altitude of 41,000 feet.

boeing 737 800 airplane on taxiway

Airbus A320

One of the first fly-by-wire commercial jets the Airbus 320 first flew on February 22, 1987.

The A-320 has an empty weight of 82,078 pounds and a fuel capacity of 52,830 pounds. The jet is normally powered by two CFM-56 power plants and can fly at 39,000 feet.

Jumbo Jets (Widebody)

Boeing 767-300

One of the first medium to long-range wide-body commercial jets, the Boeing 767-300 operates with an empty weight of 194,400 pounds and can have a take weight of 412,000 pounds.

There is also an ER extended-range version and a cargo version of the 767.

Boeing 777

The Boeing 777 known as the Triple Seven is the world’s largest twin-jet aircraft. The triple seven can seat up to 450 passengers and climb to 43,000 feet.

The 777 has a whopping empty weight of 297,300 pounds and a gross take-off weight of 545,000 pounds.

Boeing 777 airplane on taxiway

Boeing 787

One of Boeing’s first 50% composite-built airliners, the Boeing 787 Dreamliner has an empty weight of 229,500 pounds and so far there are three versions of the Dreamliner, the 800, 900, and 1000.

Airbus A330-200

The Airbus A330-200 is a twin-engine commercial jet. The empty weight of the A330-200 is 370,377 pounds and it’s maximum take-off weight is 513,677 pounds. The first flight was in 1997.

Airbus A380

The first commercial passenger aircraft with two full floors, the Airbus A380 has a huge empty weight of 814,000 pounds and a maximum take-off weight of 1,234,600 pounds.

The A380 is powered by four powerful turbojet engines producing over 70,000 pounds of thrust each.

airbus a380 in flight

What is the heaviest airplane in the world?

The heaviest airplane ever built is the Antonov AN-225. It has an empty weight of 771,681 pounds and a maximum weight of 640 tonnes (705 short tons) which is over 1.4 million pounds.

Antonov an 225 airplane on takeoff

Sharing is caring!