Starbucks Gulfstream G650ER N19HS lands in Hong Kong after 9-hour flight from Anchorage

Starbucks's Gulfstream G650ER, tail number N19HS, landed at Hong Kong International Airport (VHHH) on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at 03:02 UTC. The aircraft departed from Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (PANC) at 17:17 UTC the same day. The flight took 9 hours and 45 minutes.

The great-circle distance between Anchorage and Hong Kong is 4,402 nautical miles, about 5,066 miles. The aircraft averaged 451 knots ground speed and reached a top speed of 524 knots. Its highest altitude during the flight was 43,025 feet. Celebplanes estimates the jet burned about 4,584 US gallons of fuel, producing roughly 44,040 kilograms of carbon dioxide, equivalent to driving a car 109,010 miles. The Gulfstream G650ER is an ultra-long-range jet with a range of 7,500 nautical miles, a top speed of Mach 0.925, and a service ceiling of 51,000 feet. It typically seats 12 to 19 passengers.

This is the first landing at Hong Kong for any of Starbucks's three tracked aircraft in the window from July 27 to October 18, 2026. The home base for Starbucks's fleet is King County International Airport - Boeing Field (KBFI) in Seattle. Usual destinations include Seattle-Tacoma, San Francisco, Chicago O'Hare, London Heathrow, Tokyo Haneda, and Dubai International. In the 30 days before this flight, Starbucks's three aircraft visited 16 airports in two countries and flew about 26,591 nautical miles. The longest leg in that period was a Seattle-to-Manila flight on September 28, 2026, covering 5,780 nautical miles.

Starbucks Corporation is a global coffee retailer based in Seattle. Its CEO since September 2024 is Brian Niccol. The company operates two Gulfstream G550s, N721L and N721V, and also tracks a Gulfstream G650ER, N19HS, held through a TVPX owner trust. Niccol's commute by private jet from Newport Beach, California, to Seattle drew media scrutiny when he was appointed. According to a BBC report from October 2025, Starbucks removed a $250,000 annual cap on the CEO's personal use of the company jet after a security review cited credible threats. The arrangement is reviewed quarterly.

Hong Kong is a major financial hub and a key market for Starbucks, which operates hundreds of stores across Asia. The city is also a common stop for flights between North America and Southeast Asia. The aircraft had spent about one hour on the ground in Anchorage before departing for Hong Kong, having arrived there earlier on October 18 from Seattle.

The flight from Anchorage to Hong Kong used 59 percent of the aircraft's range. The departure airport, Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport, has a longest runway of 12,400 feet and an elevation of 152 feet. Hong Kong International Airport's longest runway is 12,467 feet, with an elevation of 28 feet. The distance from the home base in Seattle to Hong Kong is 5,636 nautical miles.

The flight adds to a busy period for Starbucks's fleet. In the 30 days before this trip, the three aircraft completed 19 flights totaling 59.6 hours in the air. The Gulfstream G650ER N19HS alone has flown multiple legs in recent weeks, including trips from Seattle to Denver, Nashville to Atlanta, and Fort Worth to Nashville.

In the tracked window from July 27 to October 18, 2026, the owner's three aircraft completed 30 flights. The most common destinations were Seattle with eight landings, Traverse City with three landings, and Nashville with two landings. Before the Hong Kong flight, N19HS flew from Seattle to Anchorage on October 18, a 2-hour 49-minute trip covering 1,251 nautical miles.