Air Tycoon Online 2 — Hardcore Credit Farming Playbook

※This article is a work in progress and its contents may change in the future.

I’ve read various articles and tried things; here I present the example that worked best. There are many technical terms, so beginners should check the wiki or similar resources.

Turn 1 (1960s) Strategy

Buy as many TU104s as possible from the moment the game starts until they are discontinued, and lease as many 707-120s as possible. If necessary, cash in credits. Then buy one 707F, set up ultra-short-range major-city routes, and complete two cargo quests in Turn 1. Buy more if you have room (e.g., London–Paris, New York–Boston, etc.).

When the TU104 is discontinued, replace high-demand (monopoly intercity) routes with 737 and 727. Once income increases, buy mainly DC-8-62s and 707s.

Only lease 707s; there is no need to buy them.

Leased 707s do not increase company value and are disadvantageous, so sell all leases around 1975. Also, do not use leases at all going forward.

1971

Sell all the TU104s you bought earlier. From here, switch to long-range and cargo-focused operations.

From this point, routes over 7,000 km become profitable. Since the DC-8 series has fewer seats, move them to smaller-scale routes, and use 747-100s on routes of Tokyo–London scale. If peak-season net profit exceeds 500,000, open ultra-long-haul routes like Tokyo–New York here. Sometimes there are whales who spend heavily; when that happens, give up competing with them and aim to be the next best.

The DC-10-30F is released in 1971. It’s a top-tier aircraft, so buy them at a pace of 10–20 per turn. The reason to rush is that the economy worsens from 1972, cutting income by about half. If you still have funds, purchase IL-62Ms and open routes in preparation. They have low value and low satisfaction, so limit them to around 30 max.

1972

An economic crisis occurs and revenue drops. This is the first major hurdle; weak companies will go under here. Basically, if you’re doing well you won’t be in the red, and you should be making at least 150,000 per month.

By “in the red” here we mean depreciation expenses exceed total revenue. Even if you’re in the red, other players are probably worse off, so your rank will likely improve just by idling. If you can, buy DC-10-30Fs at a pace of one per month. The economy is down so they won’t be immediately profitable, but conversely this is a chance to expand routes.

1973

The economic crisis ends in July and the L-1011-500 is released in October. Revenue increases and rivals start earning again, so it’s important to pull ahead here. Once the crisis lifts, immediately buy L-1011-500s and DC-10-30Fs at a pace of 10–20 per turn.

Use the L-1011 to open routes from small/medium cities to large or medium cities using stopovers. When routes pioneered with the IL-62M reach 100%, replace them as well.

You can secure large-scale routes with the L-1011 intended for 747s, and replace them when the 747 appears.

1974

DC-8 satisfaction should be dropping, so replace DC-8-62s with IL-62Ms, and replace DC-8-61s with DC-10s or, if they’re too large, manage with leftover equipment. (If there is no competition, it’s fine to keep using them until they break.) The reason to move from DC-8 to IL-62M is that you can’t allocate that much capital to those aircraft. Still, each route can make about 4,000, so choose the cheapest option possible to suppress depreciation.

Sell the phased-out DC-8s, or if you have spare capacity use them to open new routes. Be careful not to sell too many, as that lowers company value.

1975~1980

Around here it’s best to have about 400–500 routes. The aircraft you should buy at this timing are 747-200, DC-10-30, L-1011-500, and IL-62M. For small aircraft, unless they’ve reached end of life, just refurbish them. After this, unless you find large-scale routes (like London–Frankfurt), stop opening short-haul routes because acquiring slots takes time.

Long-haul - IL-62M, L-1011-500 / 747-200 Medium-haul - 747-100 / DC-10-30 / L-1011-500 Short-haul - MD-81 / DC-10-30 / 747-100

Regarding replacements: DC-8-61 and DC-8-62 are getting old, so start replacing them when they have about 50 weeks remaining. Around 5 aircraft per turn. Be careful — if you don’t act early you’ll have crashes.

For cargo, replace 707s with 100% load factor with DC-10-30s, and use the rest to open new routes. Other cargo routes should be replaced with DC-8-70F.

From May 1980, crude oil prices rise, which you can use to significantly improve your ranking.