How do I buy, maintain and sell aircraft in MSFS 2024 Career Mode?
Learn how to buy, inspect, maintain and sell aircraft in MSFS 2024 Career Mode, avoid poor used buys and protect your company credits.
To buy aircraft in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 Career Mode, first create a company and meet the required licence, rating and specialisation. Purchase an eligible aircraft from the company fleet screen, inspect and repair its components through Aircraft Management, then use the same fleet screen to review its sale quote and sell it.
Do you need to buy an aircraft for Career Mode?
You need your own aircraft only for freelance company missions. Employee missions supply the operator's aircraft, so you do not pay its purchase, insurance or maintenance costs.
Before committing your credits, understand how companies, freelance work and operating costs fit together. Owning an aircraft raises potential earnings, but it also transfers the financial risk to your company.
How do you buy an aircraft in MSFS 2024 Career Mode?
Aircraft are bought through the company or fleet area of Career headquarters, not from the normal Free Flight aircraft selector.
- Unlock the required operation. Obtain the relevant pilot licence, ratings and specialisation, then establish a compatible company. Our explanation of the licences and company requirements behind aircraft unlocks covers this progression separately.
- Open the company fleet. Enter the company area from Career headquarters and select its aircraft purchase option. Labels can vary slightly between platforms and simulator updates.
- Compare available listings. Check the model, purchase price and every condition detail provided. A cheap used aircraft may contain several worn components that need attention before dependable service.
- Calculate the real starting cost. Add immediate repairs, insurance, fuel and a cash reserve to the advertised price. Buying the aircraft is only the first expense.
- Confirm the purchase. Verify that it is being bought for the intended company, then inspect it in Aircraft Management before accepting a demanding mission.
Career Mode may present a heavily discounted first aircraft. Treat that offer as a one-time opportunity: selling the aeroplane does not guarantee that an equally cheap replacement will appear.
Which aircraft listing should you choose?
Choose condition and operating suitability before size or prestige.
| Option | Choose it when | Main risk |
|---|---|---|
| Better-condition aircraft | You have limited repair reserves and need to start earning promptly | Higher purchase price |
| Cheaper used aircraft | Purchase plus visible repairs still costs less, with cash left over | Several worn components can erase the saving |
| More capable aircraft | You have unlocked suitable missions, licences and operating funds | An expensive aircraft can sit idle without compatible work |
A mistake we see constantly is spending nearly every credit on the largest affordable aircraft. The better purchase is usually the one that can complete a steady supply of unlocked missions while leaving enough money to survive a repair.
How do you maintain a Career Mode aircraft?
Maintain an owned aircraft through its Aircraft Management or maintenance screen, where component condition and available repair actions are shown.
- Inspect it after purchase. Used aircraft can need work immediately, even when the purchase itself was affordable.
- Prioritise damaged components. Deal with failed, severely worn or safety-critical items before cosmetic or less urgent work.
- Apply the available maintenance action. Review the displayed cost before authorising each repair rather than automatically fixing everything at once.
- Avoid preventable damage. Hard landings, collisions, overspeed and poor engine handling can turn a profitable flight into a large repair bill.
- Check it again before the next mission. Do not assume that completing a flight automatically restores or services the aircraft.
Maintenance, fuel and insurance are separate expenses. Insurance can reduce specified accident losses under the selected policy, but it is not a maintenance plan and does not make ordinary wear free. Read the displayed cover, excess and payout conditions before flying.
How much money should you keep for repairs?
There is no safe universal credit amount because aircraft condition and repair prices differ. Keep enough to cover all known post-purchase work, the next insurance and operating costs, plus one unexpected repair without forcing an immediate sale.
If the purchase leaves the company unable to fix an already worn component, the aircraft was not genuinely affordable. Waiting for more employee income is safer than owning an aeroplane that cannot reliably complete freelance missions.
How do you sell an aircraft in Career Mode?
Sell an owned aircraft from the fleet or aircraft-management area of the company that owns it.
- Finish the active mission. Return to Career headquarters so the aircraft is no longer tied to an unfinished flight.
- Open the owning company. Enter its fleet and select the aircraft you intend to dispose of.
- Choose the sale option. Review the displayed valuation and make sure you selected the correct aircraft.
- Compare the alternatives. Check whether keeping it for another mission or repairing only a specific fault makes better financial sense.
- Confirm the sale. The transaction cannot simply be undone, and the next comparable aircraft may cost more.
Selling the only aircraft does not give the company a replacement. You will lose access to freelance missions requiring an owned aircraft until the company buys another eligible one.
Should you repair an aircraft before selling it?
Repair before selling only when the likely increase in value exceeds the repair cost or when a fault prevents the sale. Do not assume that every credit spent restoring an aircraft returns one credit in resale value; compare the displayed repair bill and sale quote before committing funds.
Why is the buy or sell option missing?
A missing or disabled option usually means the aircraft, company or Career session has not met the required state.
- You are flying employee missions and do not own a company aircraft.
- The required licence, rating, specialisation or company type has not been unlocked.
- The selected model is not eligible for that company activity.
- The company lacks enough credits to complete the purchase.
- An active or unfinished mission still has the aircraft assigned.
- The aircraft is an add-on that has not been configured for Career Mode by its developer.
If all requirements appear satisfied, return to the main menu and reload Career Mode before attempting another transaction. This is safer than repeatedly confirming purchases or sales while the company screen is not updating correctly.