Phil Knight's Gulfstream G650 N1KE flies from Hillsboro to Palm Springs in 1 hour 59 minutes

Phil Knight's Gulfstream G650, tail number N1KE, landed at Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport in Palm Springs, California, on Sunday, November 8, 2026, at 01:28 UTC. The aircraft departed Portland Hillsboro Airport at 23:29 UTC and spent 1 hour 59 minutes in the air. This was the first flight for N1KE in about 11 days, following a previous tracked landing at Portland on October 29, 2026.

The great-circle distance between the two airports is 782 nm, or 900 miles. The aircraft reached a highest altitude of 41,025 feet and a top ground speed of 533 knots. Our estimate puts fuel burned at about 914 US gallons and CO2 at about 8,779 kg, roughly equal to driving a car 21,730 miles. The Gulfstream G650 is an ultra long range jet with a published range of 7,000 nm and a top speed of Mach 0.925. It can seat up to 19 passengers and has a ceiling of 51,000 feet. This flight used 11 percent of the aircraft's range.

This was the second landing at Palm Springs by Knight's fleet in the tracked window from September 16 to November 6. The previous landing at Palm Springs was on November 4, 2026, by N19HT, a Gulfstream G500. Portland Hillsboro is the home base on file for both of Knight's aircraft. The usual destinations on file include Dublin, Rome, Benbecula, Seattle, Portland, and Reno. In the 30 days before this flight, the two aircraft made 31 flights, spent 39.9 hours in the air, and visited 10 airports in 3 countries. The longest leg in that window was from Dublin to Los Angeles on October 15, covering 4,491 nm, flown by N1KE.

Phil Knight is the co-founder and Chairman Emeritus of Nike, Inc., with a net worth of about $35.7 billion. He lives in Hillsboro, Oregon, on a 5-plus acre property purchased in 2012. No public event or meeting near Palm Springs was found in web sources for this date that is tied to Phil Knight or his organisation.

The flight adds to a pattern of short trips between the Pacific Northwest and Southern California for Knight's fleet.

The aircraft averaged 393 knots ground speed on the flight. Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport sits at an elevation of 115 feet below sea level, with its longest runway stretching 8,500 feet. Portland Hillsboro Airport's longest runway is 6,600 feet. The great-circle distance from home base to Palm Springs is 781 nautical miles.

In the tracked window from September 16 to November 6, the owner's two aircraft made 38 flights. The most common destinations were Portland with 15 landings, Redmond with 10, and Los Angeles with 3. The Gulfstream G650, launched in 2005, holds more than 110 speed records. Our estimate puts fuel burn at 460 US gallons per hour.