Bill Gates's Gulfstream G650ER N887GV flies 7 nm from San Jose to Mountain View

Bill Gates's Gulfstream G650ER, tail N887GV, flew from Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport to Moffett Federal Airfield in Mountain View on Sunday, October 25, 2026. The flight departed at 19:35 UTC and landed at 19:53 UTC, spending 18 minutes in the air. The great-circle distance was 7 nautical miles, or 8 miles.

The aircraft reached an average ground speed of 22 knots on this leg, with a top ground speed of 225 knots and a highest altitude of 4,875 feet. Our estimate puts fuel burned at about 139 US gallons, producing about 1,332 kilograms of CO2, roughly the same as driving a car 3,297 miles. The Gulfstream G650ER is an ultra-long-range jet with a range of 7,500 nautical miles and a ceiling of 51,000 feet. It typically seats 12 passengers and can carry up to 19.

In the 30 days before this flight, tracked aircraft linked to Bill Gates made 31 flights. Mountain View saw 3 landings in that window, with the last one on October 11, 2026, also by N887GV. The home base on file is King County International Airport, also known as Boeing Field, in Seattle. Usual destinations include Palm Springs, West Palm Beach, Las Vegas, and Bozeman. The aircraft had been on the ground for about 25 hours after arriving from Epping, Essex, on October 24.

Bill Gates is a Microsoft co-founder, philanthropist, and investor with a net worth estimated at $104 to $107 billion. He focuses on global health, development, and climate philanthropy through the Gates Foundation, Gates Ventures, and Breakthrough Energy. Mountain View is near Silicon Valley, where Gates has investments through Gates Ventures and where he has spoken about technology and philanthropy, though no specific appearance was confirmed for this date. The arrival field at Moffett Federal Airfield has a longest runway of 9,197 feet and sits at an elevation of 32 feet.

This short hop follows a pattern of local movements around the San Francisco Bay Area. The aircraft had just completed a transatlantic crossing from North Weald, Essex, to San Jose two days earlier. The flight from Mountain View to Palm Springs on October 16 was the last time this aircraft visited the area before this trip.

The flight is a brief repositioning between two nearby airports. It adds a modest 8 miles to the aircraft's logged distance for the month.

The aircraft is registered to MENTE LLC, which also operates two other aircraft from Hangar 80 at Boeing Field. Those are N608GV, a 2021 Airbus Helicopters MBB-BK117 D-3, and N897GV, a 2022 Cessna 208B Grand Caravan. Both are used for short hops around Puget Sound.

The Gulfstream G650ER has a top speed of Mach 0.925, or 516 knots. Its estimated fuel burn is 470 US gallons per hour. The departure field at San Jose has a longest runway of 11,000 feet and sits at an elevation of 62 feet.