Elon Musk’s comments about his frugal spending habits have been widely publicized, including the fact that he stays in his friends’ spare bedrooms while working at Tesla’s headquarters in the San Francisco Bay Area. Of course, Business Insider later discovered that Musk owned a $7 million home in Austin, Texas, at the time of his comments.

Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, is a big fan of private jets — and he just added a new one to his collection. According to Lexus-based news site Austonia, the 51-year-old recently purchased a Gulfstream G700, which is set to replace his Gulfstream G650ER.

Elon Musk is the richest man in the world and has a fleet of private jets to prove it. PH๏τo: TNSAdvertisement

The Tesla boss regularly travels by private plane. In 2018, the billionaire flew more than 150,000 miles (241,000 km) in his G650ER, according to flight records obtained by The Washington Post — the equivalent of circling the Earth more than six times.

Elon Musk has purchased a new Gulfstream G700, which will likely replace the G650ER (pictured in flight) he already owns. PH๏τo: Luxurylaunches

According to a report published in June by Austonia, Musk has placed an order for the Gulfstream G700

one of Gulfstream’s newest jets – scheduled for delivery in early 2023.

The exterior of the Gulfstream G700, on display in October 2022. Elon Musk’s jet is expected to arrive in 2023. PH๏τo: Reuters

But deliveries of the G700 could be delayed by three to six months as the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, continues to review the plane’s software, Flight Global reported.

Elon Musk currently owns four jets, three of which are made by Gulfstream. He also owns a Dᴀssault 900B, the first jet he ever purchased. All of Musk’s jets are registered to Falcon Landing LLC, a shell company linked to Space X, FAA records show.

So what do we know about his new purchase?

Its price is $78 million.

Elon Musk’s new G700 private jet cost him a whopping $78 million. PH๏τo:

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Aside from its high initial cost, operating the G700 can also be expensive. According to Liberty Jet, flying the aircraft for 400 hours can result in operating expenses of about $3.5 million. Fuel and engine overhauls are the most expensive components of operating the aircraft, according to the aviation site.

Musk is no stranger to these high operating costs: His Oct. 31 flight aboard the G650ER from Los Angeles to New Jersey in the United States generated $14,830 in fuel expenses, according to the Twitter account @ElonJet, which tracks Musk’s flights. Musk spent about four and a half hours in the air, according to the account.

It is the largest purpose-built private jet in the world.

A look inside Qatar Airways’ Gulfstream G700 shows a different color scheme and TV setup. PH๏τo: Qatar AirwaysAdvertisement

The G700 can seat up to 19 pᴀssengers, according to a Gulfstream spec sheet. The new model would be a “stretched” version of the G650 and would aim to rival the Bombardier 7500 in terms of size, according to Bloomberg. It measures 33 meters (109 feet) long and eight meters (25 feet) high, according to Gulfstream.

It can fly from Singapore to San Francisco non-stop

Different cabin configurations are possible with the Gulfstream G700, allowing for up to five living spaces. PH๏τo: Qatar Airways

The small but mighty G700 has a range of 13,900 km (7,500 nautical miles), meaning the jet can fly from Singapore in Asia to San Francisco in the United States nonstop. The G700 also has a cruise speed of Mach 0.925, according to the Gulfstream spec sheet mentioned above.

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According to a Gulfstream press release in May, the G700 flew from Georgia, U.S., to Geneva, Switzerland, in seven hours and 37 minutes at a cruise speed of Mach 0.90. That’s pretty fast for a small plane. It has the largest cabin of any business jet.

The interior of a G700 aircraft, one of the newest in Gulfstream Aerospace’s line, features large oval windows to let in more light. PH๏τo: ReutersAdvertisement

The G700 has the largest cabin of any business jet, measuring 56 feet, 11 inches (17 meters) in length, allowing it to have five “living spaces,” according to Gulfstream. Its cabin is divided into several sections, including a lavatory, galley, front seats, entertainment suite and dining area, as shown in the jet’s virtual tour. It has a luxurious cabin

The interior of a G700 aircraft features a bathroom so luxurious it can even accommodate a shower. PH๏τo: Reuters

The G700 can also be customized so that the bathroom is designed with a shower. The G700 also has 20 oval “well-being” windows, which allow enough light to enter the interior of the jet.

A 5.5 cubic meter (195 cubic foot) baggage compartment is located at the rear of the aircraft, according to Gulfstream.