If you’re not a professional, having a pilot’s license serves little purpose other than as a pure hobby. As training for a private pilot license can cost close to $20,000, it’s an expensive hobby as well. But for those who can afford to go up into the skies on occasion, it’s an incredibly rewarding experience. It’s a popular hobby with the upper class, and the publicized aircraft collections of some public figures truly capture the imagination.

Private jet ownership is common among the rich and famous, as it offers unrivaled convenience and extraordinary luxury, but these are used specifically for travel. Some, however, do own smaller propeller-driven aircraft. While these types of planes can be used for personal short-distance travel, they’re more often flown purely for leisure, similar to how sports cars are used. Some celebrities own multiple aircraft, and you’ll occasionally see some unique aircraft types as well.

Morgan Freeman

Getting A Late Start Into The Hobby

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Long before the 88-year-old became famous as one of the world’s greatest actors, Morgan Freeman worked as a radar repairman for the United States Air Force. He served for roughly four years after high school and reached the rank of airman first class before his honorable discharge in 1959. After his discharge, Freeman would study acting and dance, eventually committing to acting in the 1960s. He reached his breakthrough in the late 1980s, and the rest is history.

Freeman had reportedly dreamed of piloting planes since adolescence, but would never get the chance for much of his life. But in 2002, Freeman finally achieved his childhood dream when he received his private pilot’s license at 65 years old. He would later add an instrument and multi-engine rating. Apart from a brief period in 2004 when his license was suspended for 45 days (for exceeding altitude near Teterboro Airport), he’s been a certificated pilot ever since, as pilot’s licenses do not expire. However, Freeman’s last medical certificate, a third class, was issued in 2006.

Morgan Freeman holds a type rating for the Cessna Citation 500 series and owns a Cessna Citation 501SP, certified for single-pilot operations. In addition, he owns a twin-engined Cessna 414 and previously owned multiple Emivest (now SyberJet) SJ30 models, which have since been sold back to the company. Because Freeman no longer holds a valid medical certificate, he must have a certificated pilot who holds a medical certificate with him on the flight deck whenever he decides to take one of his aircraft into the air, with Freeman technically acting as a passenger.

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Harrison Ford

An Experienced Pilot On And Off-Screen

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Inside and outside the aviation community, Harrison Ford is known as a pilot. Most people know him best for his role as Han Solo in the Star Wars films, a Rebellion general and the owner of the Millennium Falcon, the fastest starship in the galaxy. But while he publicly dislikes his Star Wars character, he maintains his enthusiasm and love for flying, as Ford has been a licensed pilot since the 1990s. Aviation is a real love for Ford too, as he initially began training in the 1960s but stopped due to high costs, and previously served as chairman of the Young Eagles class.

Ford received training from one of the pilots of his Gulfstream II. He owns multiple aircraft, including a Bell 407GX helicopter, an Aviat Husky, a Cessna Grand Caravan, a Beechcraft Bonanza, a 1929 Waco 10, and a Ryan Aeronautical ST3KR, while a Cessna Citation Sovereign (a dual-pilot private jet) is used for trips. Meanwhile, Ford’s 1955 De Havilland DHC-2 Beaver is reportedly his favorite aircraft, due to the noise of the radial engine and its performance.

Harrison Ford has used his helicopter for search-and-rescue operations, and he’s also a prominent advocate for pilots’ rights. Unfortunately, Ford has also been involved in some incidents as well. This includes a 2015 emergency landing at a golf course, which damaged the Ryan Aeronautical ST3KR he was piloting and necessitated a hospital visit, as well as the more unusual incident in 2017 when Ford landed his Husky on a taxiway at John Wayne Airport, overflying a Boeing 737.

Tom Cruise

Even Pilots His Own Business Jet

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Similar to Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise is famous for portraying a pilot on screen, playing Lieutenant Pete Mitchell in the 1986 blockbuster “Top Gun” and its 2022 sequel, “Top Gun: Maverick.” In the real world, Cruise only rode in the back seat of the F-14, but he has held a pilot’s license since 1994. He is an instrument and multi-engine-rated commercial pilot who owns four fixed-wing aircraft and an Airbus H125 helicopter. Most of his planes are flown by him personally as well.

The Gulfstream IV is the flagship of Tom Cruise’s fleet, serving as his largest, most luxurious, and longest-ranging aircraft, while his Bombardier Challenger 350 is used on shorter trips. Both the Gulfstream and Challenger are dual-pilot aircraft, meaning that Cruise cannot pilot these planes on his own. For even shorter flights, Cruise’s single-pilot HondaJet is his preferred method of travel, and he is frequently seen operating it on his own.

For weekend flying, most wealthy individuals fly a Cessna 172, or a Cirrus SR22 if you’ve got the budget. But Tom Cruise’s leisure aircraft is a restored 1946 North American P-51 Mustang. Cruise first purchased this famed World War II-era fighter in 2001, and the plane is maintained by the Planes of Fame Air Museum in Chino, California. Tom Cruise famously gave James Corden a ride in his Mustang in 2022, and just a few days later, moviegoers saw the same P-51 in Top Gun: Maverick.

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John Travolta

The Ultimate Aviation Enthusiast

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John Travolta is perhaps a living example of what an aviation enthusiast would do if they were rich. First, he holds a private pilot’s license (which he has held since age 22), along with an instrument and multi-engine rating. He also holds 11 FAA type ratings, including for the Boeing 707, Boeing 720, Boeing 737, Cessna Citation 500 series, Bombardier Challenger 600 series, Dassault Falcon 50/900, Dassault Falcon 2000, Eclipse 500, Gulfstream II/III, and the classic Learjet models, while holding a 747 type rating issued by Australia. He was also the first non-test pilot to fly the Airbus A380 in Australia.

John Travolta is famous for owning a Boeing 707-138, formerly flown by Qantas, which has since been dismantled. His most recent addition is a Boeing 737-300, which was refurbished with a private jet-like interior, and lives in Jumbolair Private Estates, featuring a private runway and taxiways that lead directly to his airport terminal-inspired house. Travolta is a brand ambassador and honorary captain for Qantas, as well as a brand ambassador for Bombardier.

In addition to his larger aircraft, John Travolta also owns a Soko G-2 military trainer jet, and he personally flies his private jets. However, Travolta is only rated as second-in-command on the Boeing 737 and Dassault Falcon 900B, which he currently owns. This means that whenever he’s piloting these planes, he must have another qualified pilot next to him to act as pilot-in-command. This is not the case, however, for the Eclipse EA500, which he also currently owns, as it is a single-pilot aircraft.

Willem-Alexander Of The Netherlands

He May Be Working Your Next KLM Flight

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When discussing the upper classes of society, it doesn’t get higher than literal royalty. Whereas the prior four entries are all movie stars, Willem-Alexander is known as the reigning King of the Netherlands, a role he has held since 2013. But while being king is his main job, his side gig is aviation. He also differs from the other entries on this list in that he doesn’t fly general aviation, but is rather a fully qualified airline pilot employed by the Dutch national carrier KLM.

Aviation is a passion for King Willem-Alexander, and he’s previously stated that he would have pursued a full career as an airline pilot had he not been born into royalty. Instead, he’s relegated himself to piloting the Dutch government plane, and to stay current, he also flies the same aircraft type for KLM. King Willem-Alexander has been a pilot for over 40 years and has been employed by KLM as a first officer since the 1990s, flying roughly twice per month, though you’ll never find his presence announced on any flight.

King Willem-Alexander had long flown the Fokker 70 for KLM Cityhopper, and would transition to the Boeing 737 in the 2010s when the Fokker 70 was retired by both KLM and the Dutch government. In 2025, Willem-Alexander transitioned to flying the Airbus A320 family, as the A320neo and A321neo are replacing the Boeing 737 in KLM’s fleet. Notably, however, this means he is no longer qualified to fly the government 737, though the aircraft will likely be replaced by an A320 variant, as KLM maintains the government aircraft.