Everything You Need To Know About The 'Air Drake' Private Jet

The vast majority of people can only dream about owning their very own aircraft. After all, private jets are incredibly expensive and are exclusively the domain of the super rich and mega famous; people like Taylor Swift. For those who have the ability to splash millions of dollars on getting their hands on a private jet, they get a mode of transport that allows them to move around the world without having to compromise on comfort or privacy.

Musician and rapper Drake is one such person. The Canadian superstar is the owner of his very own private jet, known by the name Air Drake. A Boeing 767, the aircraft is a large private jet that has been customized for his exact tastes and specifications. Of course, the plane has a long history before it entered service with Drake and has been heavily involved in his life over the last few years.

Here's everything you need to know about Air Drake, Drake's personal private jet.

A wide range of aircraft are used for celebrity private jets, ranging from small planes that can hold a handful of people to large airliners that would originally be able to transport hundreds of passengers around the world. In the case of Air Drake, the aircraft is a modified Boeing 767-200. It is the original version of the Boeing 676, a wide-body airliner that officially entered service in 1982 and has become a workhorse as both a passenger jet and a cargo plane for the likes of FedEx.

Smaller than the 747, the 767-200 requires a cockpit crew of just two and is around 160 feet in length, with a wingspan of 156 feet and a twin-engine setup. It can also carry a maximum payload of 315,000 pounds across a range of almost 4,000 nautical miles. A resourceful and adaptable aircraft, the 767-200 was intended to be a more economically viable jet for shorter flights. It quickly became popular, as more than 1,200 have been produced over the last 40 years.

Initially finding a home with United Airlines, a number of variants of the 767 were developed that extended the range and size of the aircraft. The most recent major revision is the 767-400ER, although there's also been some military-specific version of the plane. Most of the aircraft still in use are in operation as cargo jets.

The particular aircraft that Drake uses for his private jet isn't a brand-new model. It is actually a second-hand Boeing 767-200 that originally started life as a freighter, hauling cargo across the world. It was put together at Boeing Everett Factory and delivered to its first customer in 1996, making it almost 30 years old as of the time of writing. The first operator of the aircraft, which now goes under the registration N767CJ but previously used N767KS, was Mid East Jet. This is a charter airline operating from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

In 2011, after 15 years of service with Mid East Jet, the aircraft was transferred to the Seattle-based Jet Stream Aviation. The aircraft eventually found its way to the Canadian cargo company Cargojet and is now operated by the company Elan Express. According to the company's LinkedIn profile, Exlan Express is an aviation company headquartered in Rockford, Illinois, that specializes in managing private Boeing aircraft. This company seemingly manages the plane on behalf of Drake, with records confirming it was repainted and officially handed over to Drake in April 2019.

One of the most striking aspects of Air Drake is the fact that it has such a colorful and distinctive livery. The aircraft is covered in paint that depicts blue skies and fluffy white clouds, essentially allowing it to blend into the sky on sunny days. The artwork is likely a reference to Drake's 2013 album "Nothing Was the Same," which features a similar skyscape. There's also a slogan written on the belly of the jet so that it can only be seen when it is flying overhead. The message reads: "If you're reading this we left." This is likely a nod to his earlier 2015 mixtape "If You're Reading This It's Too Late." A large owl is also painted on the jet, representing Drake's OVO brand.

The art is the work of Virgil Abloh, a fashion designer who is best known for creating his own Off-White fashion label as well as being an artistic director for Louis Vuitton. Abloh has also collaborated with the likes of Kanye West and Drake, with many high-profile figures from the world of entertainment attending his funeral following his unexpected death from cancer in 2021. Drake seemingly had a close relationship with the designer, making a number of tributes to him in recent years that include a tattoo, dedications in his music, and a statue of Abloh on the "It's All A Blur" tour.

Some private jets are used as a way of traveling around in total comfort, while others have a more practical use. Take Iron Maiden's Ed Force One as an example. This huge custom 747 was used to transport the band and its equipment to far flung destinations on a series of tours, allowing the musicians to visit locations that otherwise would never have been possible. In Drake's case, Air Drake seems to be more of a statement about his wealth and opulence, giving him a way of getting around that means he can travel in privacy and luxury.

That doesn't mean that Air Drake only carries the musician. The aircraft actually has enough space and amenities to accommodate up to 30 people. That's significantly lower than the standard 45 capacity of aircraft in its traditional business configuration, and much lower than the 200 plus passengers who can fly on the jet when it is operating as an airliner. A seating capacity of 30 is more than enough for Drake and his entourage as they move at a cruise speed of Mach 0.8. That includes multiple sofas, armchairs, and recliners that are unlike anything you'd see in a traditional airliner.

If you are wondering how much it costs to own a private jet, you'll likely not be surprised to learn that it is an expensive endeavor. It can cost tens of millions of dollars to purchase a private aircraft, with the most costly running in excess of $100 million. Then, of course, there are running costs and the price of customizing the plane to your particular liking. While Drake's net worth is well in excess of $250 million, a private Boeing 767-200 would typically be out of his price range unless he wanted to put a huge dent in his wealth.

Fortunately, Drake didn't have to buy Air Drake himself and the aircraft isn't actually owned by the musician. He was essentially gifted the private jet as part of a collaboration between him and Canadian company Cargojet. The cargo airline company felt that it would provide good publicity and help raise awareness of its brand to have Drake fly around the world in its 767-200. Drake and Cargojet had previously worked together, with the company hauling Drake's equipment to tour destinations. The plane itself is worth around $185 million and Cargojet allegedly spent up to $100 million to refurbish it for use by Drake, with the rapper charging $3 million to provide rides to his celebrity friends.

As you'd expect for a private jet owned and used by a famous rapper, the aircraft's interior is fully customized to be as lavish and stylish as possible. While it may not have the look many people would want for their own personal mode of transport, it certainly sticks out. The musician often posts videos and images taken inside Air Drake, giving fans an idea of exactly what it looks like. Several of other figures have also released virtual tours of the aircraft, showing just how it is decorated.

The main space of the aircraft is outfitted with a striped carpet, wood paneling with gold details, and a range of luxurious furniture. This includes everything from sofas and armchairs to recliners, featuring a mixture of velvet plush and luxe leather surfaces. Colors for the furniture range from neutral white and beige to black and purple, with mood lighting that can switch between different hues available throughout the main area. There are also multiple large mirrors and pieces of ornate-looking artwork scattered throughout the different rooms, all detailed with gold and luxury wooden features.

If you've ever flown before, you'll know that passenger jets typically don't have a lot of amenities. There'll usually be a couple of bathrooms, and staff will periodically offer refreshments in the form of food or drink, but little else. First class passengers might have access to a spa or bar, but these facilities are usually small and pretty limited. That's definitely not the case when it comes to private jets, though, with owners able to fully customize an aircraft and make use of all the extra space that becomes available when the hundreds of seats are removed.

Although the Boeing 767-200 isn't quite as large as a Boeing 747, it is still much larger than many private jets offered by other manufacturers. That means there's a lot of extra space to use, and Drake has certainly taken advantage of the size of his jet. Air Drake not only features a huge main space where people can relax, but three private suites feature luxurious beds for those who want to spend time alone. The aircraft features a business lounge, an office, and two living rooms, in addition to a theater room that comes equipped with large flat-screen televisions. Finally, there's a bathroom that even has a shower for long journeys so those on the jet can stay fresh.

While Drake has certainly shown some love to other basketball teams and hangs out with stars such as LeBron James and Stephen Curry, his number one passion has always been his hometown team of the Toronto Raptors. The rapper is not only an ardent supporter of the franchise but is also heavily involved in its running. He has collaborated with the team on a clothing range, acts as an ambassador, and even hosts a regular Drake Night.

So it makes a lot of sense that when the Toronto Raptors won their first championship in 2019, Drake celebrated in style. After the team won game six and clinched the championship, the music star was kind enough to allow many of the players to return home to Canada from the United States onboard his private jet. A few days later, Air Drake took part in the team's victory parade in Toronto. While the players were parading the trophy through the streets, Drake took his plane on a flyby overhead.

If you follow people like Elon Musk or Taylor Swift, then you'll probably be aware that there are multiple social media accounts and websites that automatically track their private jets. These services use publicly available information to see the journeys that the aircraft make, although typically don't provide any details about who is onboard. This has led to some controversy, with Musk effectively banning these kinds of accounts from Twitter.

The reason behind these trackers is twofold. People are naturally interested in knowing where famous figures are flying and what they are up to. But there's also those who want to highlight the increased carbon footprint of this form of travel, one of the shocking details about celebrity private jets. With Drake having such a large aircraft, he has become a prime target. A now defunct Twitter account previously detailed his movements, providing information such as departure and arrival times as well as destinations. Other similar accounts have sprung up on the likes of Instagram, while celebrity jet tracking websites also exist that give a history of flights for specific jets, including Air Drake.

Flying isn't the greenest form of transportation. Aircraft need a lot of fuel to maintain flight and are not particularly efficient, meaning they can have a significant effect on greenhouse emissions and, ultimately, climate change. Even full airliners that carry hundreds of passengers suffer from this problem, so it is easy to see how private jets create an even larger carbon footprint when just a handful of people use them.

Many celebrities have been subjected to criticism for their use of chartered or private flights, especially when used over short distances. Taylor Swift has been a regular target for this type of criticism, while Drake has also faced online attacks. In 2022, the rapper was lambasted after reports that Air Drake had made several flights of less than 20 minutes over the course of a few weeks. These short flights burned hundreds of gallons of fuel, equivalent to an average carbon footprint for a person across 12 months.

Drake subsequently tried to defend the use of the 767-200, claiming that these types of flights were purely logistical and had no passengers on board as they were merely to move the aircraft to locations for storage. However, this only led to further criticism about the flights being unnecessary and wasteful.

Most people will never get to see the inside of a passenger jet's cockpit, especially during a flight. But having your own private jet certainly comes with some privileges that mean you don't have to follow rules that normal people have to. Yet, even if you were allowed into a cockpit, chances are that you'd want to be safely strapped in your seat when the aircraft is coming in to land, especially in tricky conditions when things could get bumpy.

That isn't the case for Drake, though, who actively seeks out the cockpit to watch landings when conditions are less than ideal. In a video posted to his Instagram account, the musician captures Air Drake coming in to land at an airport where there is thick fog and very low visibility. The footage gives an idea of how skilled pilots are, as the runway only appears out of the windscreen at the very last moment, giving the crew only a small amount of time to react and get the plane to touch down safely.

It seems like Drake enjoys the exhilaration that comes with experiencing a landing like this. In a caption written alongside the video, Drake wrote: "There's a couple landings I love on Air Drake but tbh the low visibility is the most exciting it makes your heart drop a bit."

Not content with sticking to the same paint job for an extended period of time, Drake has recently teased a makeover for his private jet. As is the case with his original design for Air Drake, this version of the aircraft has also been led by Virgil Abloh, suggesting it is something the designer and rapper both planned together several years ago, given the untimely passing of Abloh in 2021. Presumably, Abloh and Drake planned out several possible versions of the aircraft's exterior to keep its look fresh for years to come.

Like the initial design, this look features a skyscape and is more of a variant of what came before rather than a totally new livery. Instead of the previous bright blue skies and fluffy white clouds, released images show that Air Drake 2 has a moodier appearance. There are dark storm clouds and flashes of lightning this time around, giving the aircraft a slightly darker and more menacing style.