$100 hamburger

Aviation slang $100 hamburger ("hundred-dollar hamburger") is aviation slang for the excuse a general aviation pilot might use to fly. Cleared for Lunching: The $100 Hamburger Matthew Preusch https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/26/travel/escapes/26burger.html The New York Times October 26, 2007 May 16, 2011 Background As early as 1937, hamburgers were being referred to as the "so-called staff of life to aviation".Turner Bennie Aviation and Its Cousins http://www.newspapers.com/newspage/450142414 12 October 2026 Daily Oklahoman 14 March 1937 10-B A $100 hamburger trip typically involves flying a short distance (less than two hours), eating at an airport restaurant, and then flying home. "$100" originallyJune 2025 referred to the approximate total cost of renting or operating a light general aviation aircraft (such as a Cessna 172) for the round trip, and buying the meal.Daniels Lauren Drewes Come Fly With Us to Pilots' Favorite '$100 Hamburgers' http://www.dallasobserver.com/food-drink/100-burgers-a-plane-ride-away-from-dallas-11870397 12 October 2026 Dallas Observer 17 February 2020 In California, for example, in the San Francisco Bay Area one could fly short distances up to the Nut Tree in Vacaville, or down to Harris Ranch in Fresno County. Often the meal is upgraded to steaks, rather than just hamburgers.October 2026 Since the term was coined, fuel prices have increased hourly operating costs for most airplanes. In 1988, the term was "$50 hamburger".November 1988 FAA Reviews Pilot Certification http://books.google.com/books?id=EnCJVQrXwMoC&pg=PA12 Flying 115 11 14 or 16 Diamandis Communications 12 October 2026 Not all pages in source have pages numbers and those with numbers do not line up with actual sequence of pages, suggesting some pages are missing. However, by 2008 a flight instructor in Pennsylvania said that such trips had become "more like a $200 hamburger".Fontaine Tom Soaring Fuel Prices Spoiling '$100 Hamburger' https://eu.timesonline.com/story/news/2008/05/18/soaring-fuel-prices-spoiling-100/18394540007/ 29 April 2026 Beaver County Times 18 May 2008 In 2020, a Cessna 172 cost US$154–195Fleet Aircraft http://www.sancarlosflight.com/fleet San Carlos Flight Center 12 October 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20200610020335/http://www.sancarlosflight.com/fleet 10 June 2020 per Hobbs hour to rent, including fuel.Cessna 172 R/SP Rental Rates http://www.flights-inc.com/fleet.asp?cat=0 Flights, Inc. 12 October 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20220523194457/http://www.flights-inc.com/fleet.asp?cat=0 23 May 2022 In Perth, Western Australia, a similar mentality resulted in the "Rotto Bun Run". A group of pilots who had run out of hot cross buns on Good Friday decided to fly to the closest open bakery on Rottnest Island. The run is now an annual charity event.Commemorative Flights http://www.royalaeroclubwa.com.au/club-flying/commemorative-flights Royal Aero Club of Western Australia 12 October 2026 https://web.archive.org/web/20110217035257/http://www.royalaeroclubwa.com.au/club-flying/commemorative-flights 17 February 2011 References Category:General aviation Category:English-language slang Category:Metaphors referring to meat Category:Transport terminology Category:Metaphors referring to sandwiches