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According to ARGUS TRAQPak analysts, business aviation flight activity has risen to its highest levels since 2012, and more growth is ahead.
July business aviation flight activity posted an increase from June to finish the month up 3.7 per cent. Results by operational category were all positive, with Fractional operators posting a significant monthly increase of 7.1 per cent. The Part 135 market also posted a substantial increase, up 6.1 per cent from June. The Part 91 market posted a 1.5 per cent month over month increase. Looking at the aircraft categories, turboprops have continued to remain strong, posting an increase of 5.2 per cent; this marks the 5th straight monthly rise for the turboprop market. Small and mid-size cabin aircraft posted monthly rises of 4.4 per cent and 3.4 per cent respectively. The large cabin market posted a slight decrease from June, down 0.4 per cent. The largest monthly gain occurred in the Fractional turboprop segment, up an impressive 25.8 per cent from June.
Reviewing year over year flight activity (July 2015 vs. July 2014); TRAQPak data indicates that July 2015 posted an increase of 5.6 per cent; the largest year over year rise since February 2012, which included an extra day due to leap year. The results by operational category showed significant growth in the Part 91 and Part 135 markets, up 3.8 per cent and 9.6 per cent respectively. The Fractional market reversed course to post its first year over year rise since November 2014, up 2.8 per cent. Flight activity by aircraft category was positive for all categories, with turboprops posting the largest gain, up 7.6 per cent from July 2014; that is the 5th consecutive year over year increase for this sector. Large cabin aircraft finished in a close 2nd, up 7.0 per cent from 2014. The small and mid-size cabin markets posted yearly increases of 4.9 per cent and 3.2 per cent, in that order. The largest year over year gain for an individual segment occurred in the Fractional turboprop segment, which saw an increase of 19.7 per cent.
Looking ahead to next month, TRAQPak analysts estimate there will be a 4.0 per cent increase in overall flight activity year over year in August 2015.
ARGUS TRAQPak data is serial-number specific aircraft arrival and departure information on all IFR flights in the US (including Alaska and Hawaii) and Canada. The information here reflects business aircraft activity data for July 1-31, 2015 vs. June 1-30, 2015 and July 1-31, 2015 vs. July 1-31, 2014 respectively. A copy of this report can be found at TRAQPak Business Aircraft Activity Reports.
