Challenger 300/350 vs Citation Latitude: how the two fleets are really flown
On one of the four chapters' lead measures, the gap inside each fleet is bigger than the gap between the Challenger 300/350 and the Citation Latitude. The clearest difference is short runways: the middle Challenger 300/350 at 20%, the middle Citation Latitude at 4%, with no overlap between their middle halves.
Bombardier Challenger 300/350 fleet statistics →Cessna Citation Latitude fleet statistics →
Fatigue
On hours per landing, the types sit further apart than the middle half of either fleet spans: the middle Challenger 300/350 at 1.6 : 1, the middle Citation Latitude at 1.4 : 1.
What each landing and pressurization cycle costs the structure: landings per hour and short hops.
Hours per landing
Where the two fleets sitSide by side
Every active aircraft of each type in North America: 755 Challenger 300/350s and 361 Citation Latitudes.| Measure | Challenger 300/350 median | Middle half | Citation Latitude median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hours per landing Each aircraft’s average flight hours per landing | 1.6 : 1 | 1.4–1.8 : 1 | 1.4 : 1 | 1.3–1.5 : 1 |
| Short hops Share of legs under 300 nm | 35% | 28–41% | 43% | 40–45% |
| Leg length Median leg | 481 nm | 389–595 nm | 363 nm | 339–388 nm |
Corrosion
On salt air, the gap between the types is smaller than the spread inside either fleet: the middle Citation Latitude at 7%, the middle Challenger 300/350 at 4%.
What the air around the fleet does overnight: salt, damp and freeze–thaw.
Salt air
Where the two fleets sitSide by side
Aircraft we can place on enough nights at known fields: 609 Challenger 300/350s and 311 Citation Latitudes.| Measure | Challenger 300/350 median | Middle half | Citation Latitude median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salt air Nights within 2 km of the coast | 4% | <1–9% | 7% | 3–9% |
| Near the coast Nights within 10 km of the coast | 25% | 6–44% | 35% | 24–41% |
| Damp air Hours a day at 80% humidity or more, above freezing | 7.1 h | 6.0–8.1 h | 6.9 h | 6.1–7.6 h |
| Freeze–thaw Nights that froze and thawed within the day | 8% | 4–13% | 10% | 7–13% |
| Moisture in the air Average absolute humidity overnight | 9.5 g/m³ | 8.4–10.5 g/m³ | 9.6 g/m³ | 8.9–10.3 g/m³ |
Engines and brakes
On short runways, the fleets part: the middle Challenger 300/350 at 20%, the middle Citation Latitude at 4%, and their middle halves don't overlap.
What departures ask of engines, brakes and tires: heat and height, and runway length.
Short runways
Where the two fleets sitSide by side
Departures we could assess: 755 Challenger 300/350s and 361 Citation Latitudes.| Measure | Challenger 300/350 median | Middle half | Citation Latitude median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short runways Departures where the longest runway was under 1.25× the takeoff distance | 20% | 15–26% | 4% | 3–5% |
| Hot, high takeoffs Departures at 5,000 ft density altitude or more | 6% | 3–9% | 7% | 4–9% |
| Density altitude Typical density altitude at takeoff | 1,432 ft | 1,206–1,717 ft | 1,463 ft | 1,328–1,593 ft |
Utilization
On flights a month, the types sit further apart than the middle half of either fleet spans: the middle Citation Latitude at 35, the middle Challenger 300/350 at 10.
How steadily each fleet is used: flights, flying days and estimated hours.
Flights a month
Where the two fleets sitSide by side
Every active Challenger 300/350 (755) and every active Citation Latitude (361). Each type uses the tracking rule its own fleet page uses.| Measure | Challenger 300/350 median | Middle half | Citation Latitude median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flights a month In the months it flew | 9.8 | 5.8–25.8 | 35.0 | 9.5–39.7 |
| Days flown a month Days with at least one flight | 6.6 | 4.3–14.0 | 15.7 | 6.2–17.6 |
| Estimated hours a year From time in the air | ≈194 h | 114–527 h | ≈582 h | 163–665 h |
Choosing between a Challenger 300/350 and a Citation Latitude?
Check both tails, not the types.
Enter the two tails on your shortlist. TailCheck grades each one on Fatigue, Corrosion, Engines and brakes, and Utilization against its own type, then puts them side by side.
Trip-length mix
36% of Challenger 300/350 legs and 43% of Citation Latitude legs were under 300 nm, a gap of 7 percentage points; 24% and 16% were over 900 nm.
| Leg length (nm) | Challenger 300/350 | Citation Latitude |
|---|---|---|
| <150 | 16% | 20% |
| 150–300 | 20% | 23% |
| 300–450 | 13% | 15% |
| 450–600 | 10% | 11% |
| 600–900 | 17% | 16% |
| 900–1,200 | 11% | 9% |
| 1,200–1,800 | 8% | 6% |
| 1,800+ | 5% | 1% |
Share of legs by length in nautical miles, 1 Aug 2025 – 31 Jul 2026: 129,080 legs by 755 Challenger 300/350s and 112,869 legs by 361 Citation Latitudes, every leg with a known distance. The Challenger 300/350's trips bunch at 150–300 nm, the Citation Latitude's at 150–300 nm.
Challenger 300/350 vs Citation Latitude: on paper
Certified figures come from each type certificate data sheet, the rest from the manufacturer. Each figure names its source; a range covers the variants one page tracks together; a dash means we don’t have a source for that figure yet.
| Measure | Challenger 300/350 | Citation Latitude |
|---|---|---|
| Range (manufacturer) | 3,065–3,200 nmChallenger 300: Manufacturer (archived spec page, 29 Sep 2012); Challenger 350: Manufacturer (archived spec page, 14 Jul 2021) | 2,700 nmManufacturer (spec page, Web page, retrieved 21 Oct 2026) |
| High-speed cruise (manufacturer) | Mach 0.82Challenger 300: Manufacturer (archived spec page, 29 Sep 2012); Challenger 350: Manufacturer (archived spec page, 14 Jul 2021) | 446 ktManufacturer (spec page, Web page, retrieved 21 Oct 2026) |
| Takeoff distance (manufacturer) | 4,835 ft (Challenger 350)Manufacturer (archived spec page, 14 Jul 2021) | 3,580 ftManufacturer (spec page, Web page, retrieved 21 Oct 2026) |
| Cabin length (manufacturer) | 25 ft 2 in (Challenger 350)Manufacturer (archived spec page, 14 Jul 2021) | 21 ft 9 inManufacturer (spec page, Web page, retrieved 21 Oct 2026) |
| Maximum takeoff weight (certified) | 38,500–40,600 lbUK CAA TCDS UK.TC.A.00099 Issue 2, p.9 | 30,800 lbEASA TCDS EASA.IM.A.033 Issue 9, p.27 |
| Fuel capacity (certified) | 14,150 lbUK CAA TCDS UK.TC.A.00099 Issue 2, p.7 | 11,394 lbEASA TCDS EASA.IM.A.033 Issue 9, p.25 |
| Maximum operating altitude (certified) | 45,000 ftEASA TCDS EASA.IM.A.080 Issue 11, p.7 | 45,000 ftEASA TCDS EASA.IM.A.033 Issue 9, p.26 |
| Passenger seats (certified) | Up to 16EASA TCDS EASA.IM.A.080 Issue 11, p.8 | Up to 9EASA TCDS EASA.IM.A.033 Issue 9, p.27 |
Challenger 300/350 vs Citation Latitude: questions
Which is flown more, the Challenger 300/350 or the Citation Latitude?
The Citation Latitude, by about 388 estimated hours a year: the middle Citation Latitude flew ≈582 h a year, the middle Challenger 300/350 ≈194 h. That is a fleet median: the middle half of Citation Latitudes logged 163–665 h and of Challenger 300/350s 114–527 h, so one aircraft can sit far from its type. In flights, the medians are 10 a month for the Challenger 300/350 and 35 for the Citation Latitude.
Which lands more often for its hours, the Challenger 300/350 or the Citation Latitude?
The Citation Latitude: its middle aircraft flies 1.4 hours per landing, against 1.6 for the Challenger 300/350, 0.2 hours fewer per landing. More landings per hour means more pressurization cycles for the same time in the air. Short hops, legs under 300 nm, make up 35% of the middle Challenger 300/350's legs and 43% of the middle Citation Latitude's.
Which flies longer trips, the Challenger 300/350 or the Citation Latitude?
The Challenger 300/350, by 118 nm on the median leg: 481 nm for the middle aircraft, against 363 nm for the Citation Latitude. 36% of Challenger 300/350 legs and 43% of Citation Latitude legs were under 300 nm, a gap of 7 percentage points; 24% and 16% were over 900 nm.
Which spends more nights by the sea, the Challenger 300/350 or the Citation Latitude?
The Citation Latitude, by 3 percentage points: its middle aircraft spends 7% of its nights within 2 km of the coast, the middle Challenger 300/350 4%. Salt air is one of the corrosion inputs a TailCheck report grades for one aircraft against its own type.
Which has the longer range on paper, the Challenger 300/350 or the Citation Latitude?
The manufacturers quote 3,065–3,200 nm for the Challenger 300/350 and 2,700 nm for the Citation Latitude. Those are book figures at stated conditions; how far the fleets actually fly is in the trip-length mix above.
Does this comparison include the Challenger 350?
Yes. The tracking data doesn't tell the Challenger 300 and Challenger 350 apart, so the Challenger 300/350 figures here cover all of them. The specs table names a figure’s variants where the sources separate them.
Cite this data
The Aircraft Ledger. “Bombardier Challenger 300/350 vs Cessna Citation Latitude.” Data to 31 July 2026. theaircraftledger.com/compare/bombardier-challenger-300-vs-cessna-citation-latitude
Method: Challenger 300/350s and Citation Latitudes with most departures in North America, ADS-B tracking. Flight measures cover 1 Aug 2025 – 31 Jul 2026; each figure is the median of its own fleet, with the middle half (25th–75th percentile). Estimated hours from time in the air. We assume the longest runway at each field, so short-runway figures are conservative. Specifications from type certificate data sheets and the manufacturers, each cited. About our data