Mid-2026 Market Snapshot: Business Jet Inventory, Pricing & Activity

The first half of 2026 was a continuation of business aviation operating from a buoyed baseline post-pandemic. Flight activity is still expanding, and OEM order books remain at decade highs, although pre-owned aircraft pricing is normalizing and there is a slight slowdown in pre-owned transactions. All of this during elevated geopolitical tensions, an early-2026 energy shock, and a downgraded global economic growth outlook. This report examines the current state of the business aviation market in detail, including demand, supply, pricing, and economic trends, to provide a clear picture of where the industry stands and what lies ahead for the remainder of 2026.

In this Report

1. Market Highlights
2. Flight Activity and Usage Trends
3. Pre-Owned Aircraft Inventory and Supply
4. Transactions and Demand Dynamics
5. Aircraft Age and Buyer Behavior
6. Ownership Models and Buyer Profiles
7. Pre-Owned Inventory Dynamics
8. Pricing Trends and Aircraft Values
9. Webinar Highlights
10. Outlook for the Second Half of 2026

Market Highlights

• Global business jet departures reached 1.95 million in H1 2026, up 4.0% year-over-year with North America (+5.0%) and Latin America (+4.6%) leading
• The Middle East was a clear exception to the strong global growth seen in H1, with activity contracting 17.8% compared with H125 following the February conflict outbreak
• Whole aircraft pre-owned transactions totaled 1,115 in H1 2026, a 10.8% decline vs H1 2025, consistent with softening monthly transaction volume, although this is compared against an unusually strong H1 2025 and the pre-owned trend is expected to improve throughout the rest of the year
• New business jet deliveries reached an estimated 466 units in H1 2026, up 6.6% year-over-year, extending the momentum from 2025’s 8.5% growth, with North America accounting for 86% of deliveries
• Average asking prices have continued their gradual correction on a June-26 TTM basis, Small Jets averaged $3.21mn (down 1.6% YOY), Medium Jets at $5.27mn (down 5.2% YOY), and Large Jets at $12.63mn (down 15.7% YOY)
• The inventory pool continues to age with 74% of for-sale inventory now 16 years or older in H1 2026, up from 70% in 2025, 60% in 2019, and 57% in 2015
• OEM order books remain at decade highs. Combined backlog across the top OEMs reached $58.2bn in Q1 2026, up 19.5% year-over-year, led by Bombardier’s 43.0% surge on Global 8000 and Challenger demand, providing a strong production horizon into the coming years
• Macro conditions for business aviation have been mixed. Corporate profits hit a record $3.95tn in Q126 and the UHNWI population reached a record 684,000+, but the energy shock has reversed disinflation, while consumer sentiment sits at near record lows, and the IMF has cut its 2026 global growth forecast to 3.0%

Flight Activity and Usage Trends

Global business jet activity carried its momentum into 2026. According to WINGX data, worldwide departures in H1 2026 were 4.0% higher than in H1 2025, and on a June-26 trailing-twelve-month basis global departures reached 3.97 million, up 4.9% versus the prior TTM period.

North America continues to lead, accounting for 71.8% of H1 activity and growing 5.0% year-over-year, driven by sustained strength across Private Flight Departments and Fractional Operators. While accounting for 7.9% of global H1 bizjet traffic, Latin America stood out among emerging markets at +4.6% in H1, while Africa led all regions on a TTM basis at +10.5%, however only accounted for 1.1% of activity. The US-Israel-Iran conflict outbreak in February had an extremely negative impact on bizjet activity in the Middle East, with Middle East traffic down 17.8% in H1, although monthly declines have moderated from the 20%+ drops seen earlier in the year to -11.4% in June, suggesting a tentative recovery may be taking place.

Hours per aircraft are continuing to rise as well. Global average hours per aircraft reached 21.7 in H126, up 1.1% vs H1 2025 and 9.9% above H1 2019, proving that the active fleet is being worked harder than pre-pandemic norms and that demand (hours) is outpacing supply (aircraft).

H1 trends by operator type varied widely. Fractional Operators and Private Flight Departments continue to drive growth, both up more than 10% YOY while accounting for a combined 38% share of global H1 activity. Aircraft Management (22% share) operators have transitioned into a mature growth phase, expanding in the low single-digits at just 1.9%. Charter Operators (16% share) declined at a sluggish rate of 3.1%, reflecting some potential demand displacement towards Fractional Operators. All while Corporate Flight Departments (15% share) continue to struggle, down 8.9% through the first half of the year.

Activity remains concentrated in the largest Fractional and Charter Operators, though growth trends vary widely. NetJets leads as the top Fractional Provider with 525,800 TTM departures (13% share of global activity) and up 10.5%, with Flexjet in 2^nd place (5% share) posting the strongest growth amongst top operators at +14% on a TTM basis. Since 2019, FlyExclusive has been the strongest performer, although only accounting for 1% of activity, almost 200% higher than 2019 levels. Wheels Up is the notable declining outlier, with departures down 23.8% on a June-26 TTM basis and sitting well below its 2019 traffic.

Pre-Owned Aircraft Inventory and Supply

Pre-owned aircraft inventory, having recovered from historic pandemic-era lows, has begun to tighten again rather than build. On a June-26 TTM basis, roughly 1,790 aircraft were available for sale monthly, a slight pullback from full-year 2025’s average of 1,835, with the average monthly figure drifting even lower in H126 to 1,697.

Key Trends:

• For-sale inventory as a percentage of the fleet fell to 6.6% in H1 2026, a modest tightening from 7.3% in 2025, and well below the 9-12% norms of 2014-2020
• The inventory-to-transaction ratio of roughly 0.63:1 on a June-26 TTM basis stays below the 0.85:1 seen across 2013-2019

Another indicator of a more selective market is slower turnover. Average days on market reached 98 on a June-26 TTM basis, up 5.6% vs June-25 TTM, with a distinctive split by aircraft age: the newest aircraft (0-5 years) still transact in just 54 days, while aircraft 16 years and older now take more than 100 days to transact.

Transactions and Demand Dynamics

Demand for pre-owned business jets cooled in the first half of 2026 compared to an exceptionally strong H1 2025.

Key Highlights:

• 1,115 pre-owned transactions were recorded in H126, a 10.8% decline vs H1 2025
• The TTM transaction trend, which had risen above 15% year-over-year in December 2025, softened to just +4% in June 2026, with monthly year-over-year comparisons negative throughout H126
• Small Jets remained the most actively traded cabin class at 544 H1 transactions, though down vs H125
• Large Jets posted the only H1 growth at +3.8% with 332 transactions, albeit a notable deceleration from 2025’s exceptional performance

Table 1: Pre-Owned Business Jet Transactions - H1 2026 vs. H1 2025

Aircraft Age and Buyer Behavior

The market continues to favor younger aircraft. Newest aircraft (0-5 years) maintain exceptional liquidity at just 54 days on market, and demand for young airframes remains strong as scarcity drives rapid transactions at the newer end of the spectrum. In contrast, older aircraft are broadly extending their marketing periods, with the 21-25 year band reaching 115 days on market in H1 (up nearly 30% year-on-year) and aircraft 26 years and older sitting at 128 days.

With that said, WINGX flight activity data shows older airframes remain in productive service rather than exiting the fleet at a rapid rate, with aircraft 21+ years accounted for the largest share of flight activity at 24.9% and grew 9.5% on a TTM basis, with examples like the Citation X being adopted into busy charter fleets. Overall, young aircraft are prized and scarce in the pre-owned transaction market, while older aircraft are slower to trade, but remain active.

Ownership Models and Buyer Profiles

End users (private individuals and corporations) remain the primary buyers of new aircraft, accounting for 60% of deliveries through year-to-date, proving that direct ownership remains the dominant model despite exceptional growth in fractional alternatives.

Key Trends:

• Fractional providers (Program Holders) captured 20% of new deliveries so far in 2026, up from around 10% pre-pandemic, reflecting aggressive fleet expansion by operators like NetJets and Flexjet
• Part 135 charter operators represented roughly 2% of deliveries, with other intermediaries at approximately 18%

Fleet operator orders have been a large part of OEM order books in recent years. H1 2026 saw some operators committing to more additional aircraft:

• Vista Global: up to 160 Bombardier Challenger 3500s
• Flexjet: roughly 50 Gulfstream G500s/700s
• BOND: 28 additional Challenger 3500s/Global 8000s
• Platoon: approximately 12 Citation Longitudes
• The Helicopter Company: 12 firm Challenger/Global Aircraft

Pre-Owned Inventory Dynamics

Alongside cooling transaction volumes, inventory and pricing movements illustrate a market shifting toward equilibrium.

Table 2: Inventory of Pre-Owned Business Jets

Key Takeaways:

• Inventory has continued to drift lower, keeping the market in seller-friendly territory
• Ample structural demand continues to absorb most available supply

Pricing Trends and Aircraft Values

After the extraordinary pandemic-era surge, the market continues a gradual and healthy correction, while values remain historically elevated.

Table 3: Average Used Jet Asking Price by Cabin Class ($mn)

Key Takeaways:

• Values remain elevated compared to 2019 levels: on a rolling 12-month basis, Small Jets are more than 50% higher, Medium Jets approximately 45% higher, while Large Jets are only 10% higher
• The 2022-2024 window marked historic value appreciation as pandemic demand met supply shortages, with all three cabin classes correcting since
• Small and Medium Jets continue to hold firmly above 2019 levels, while Large Jets have contracted closest to pre-pandemic pricing
• Supply discipline is keeping the cycle healthy, although output constraint may be a coincidence rather than OEM strategy. The panel was divided on whether constrained delivery growth reflects deliberate OEM strategy or simply an industrial reality, a “happy accident” keeping supply and demand in balance
• It was noted that whilst some OEMs are reporting an easing of supply constraints, the overall picture is still complicated with specific shortages in critical parts preventing an overall recovery
• Demand remains anchored in wealth creation. With corporate profits and equities at highs, buyers continue to move cash into hard assets, and business jets fit in that category
• The pre-owned market is expected to firm. Volumes should build through H2 2026, with newer aircraft trading quickly while older airframes list more and linger longer
• One of the reasons that the pre-owned market is relatively weak YOY in 2026 is that the tariff announcements in early 2025 hurried through a lot of deals. The panel noted that although the market was expected to suffer from the tariffs, as it turned out demand was largely unaffected.
• The top end of the market shows no signs of price sensitivity. The highest end of buyers is largely indifferent to aircraft price, and the OEMs that produce these jets are enjoying the benefits of that, though the panel saw the next leap in business jet innovation less clearly and expect “more of the same”
• Fractional growth drew enthusiasm and caution. Praised as a strong middle ground between charter and whole aircraft ownership, though panelists split on whether the growth is durably additive to overall flight activity
• Geopolitics is the swing factor to watch. An exogenous shock remains the likeliest end to the cycle, tempered by the industry’s proven resilience

Webinar Highlights

To complement this mid-year industry review, JIQ convened a panel of industry leaders to discuss where the market stands and what lies ahead. The discussion featured Richard Koe (JIQ), Bill Ostrove (Global Jet Capital), Kevin Schwab (Honeywell Aerospace), and Richard Aboulafia (AeroDynamic Advisory), and ranged across the demand outlook, supply-chain health, the pre-owned market, durability of fractional growth, and the macro and geopolitical risks framing the second half of the year. The consensus is that the industry is in a state of cautious optimism, supported across a number of key tailwinds, while also keeping a close eye on factors that could shift the cycle.

Key Takeaways:

• Supply discipline is keeping the cycle healthy, although output constraint may be a coincidence rather than OEM strategy. The panel was divided on whether constrained delivery growth reflects deliberate OEM strategy or simply an industrial reality, a “happy accident” keeping supply and demand in balance
• It was noted that whilst some OEMs are reporting an easing of supply constraints, the overall picture is still complicated with specific shortages in critical parts preventing an overall recovery
• Demand remains anchored in wealth creation. With corporate profits and equities at highs, buyers continue to move cash into hard assets, and business jets fit in that category
• The pre-owned market is expected to firm. Volumes should build through H2 2026, with newer aircraft trading quickly while older airframes list more and linger longer
• One of the reasons that the pre-owned market is relatively weak YOY in 2026 is that the tariff announcements in early 2025 hurried through a lot of deals. The panel noted that although the market was expected to suffer from the tariffs, as it turned out demand was largely unaffected.
• The top end of the market shows no signs of price sensitivity. The highest end of buyers is largely indifferent to aircraft price, and the OEMs that produce these jets are enjoying the benefits of that, though the panel saw the next leap in business jet innovation less clearly and expect “more of the same”
• Fractional growth drew enthusiasm and caution. Praised as a strong middle ground between charter and whole aircraft ownership, though panelists split on whether the growth is durably additive to overall flight activity
• Geopolitics is the swing factor to watch. An exogenous shock remains the likeliest end to the cycle, tempered by the industry’s proven resilience

Outlook for the Second Half of 2026

The outlook for the remainder of 2026 is cautiously optimistic, with downside risks from geopolitical turbulence cascading into supply chains and economic shocks stalling business jet demand. H1 indicators showed the industry on an even keel, but the evolution of the industry in recent decades exhibits its exposure to economic recessions.

Key Drivers of H2 2026:

1. Pricing Stability with Gradual Softening

• Older aircraft that appreciated during the pandemic are expecting to see further downwards correction, while newer models should retain value on limited availability and extended OEM timelines, but will continue to be in very limited supply.

2. Strong Utilization Trends

• Activity is projected to stay elevated through Q3 and Q4, relatively stronger than in H2 2025, with fractional demand as well as new aircraft owners continuing to drive gains.
• The Middle East region is on watch. While accounting for a small portion of global activity, the Middle East had been one of the strongest emerging markets pre-conflict, and although the building blocks are in place, an open ended regional conflict would sap growth momentum in business aviation infrastructure investment.

3. Macro Wildcards

• A softer global GDP growth outlook could pressure price-sensitive segments
• The increased share of aircraft orders and activity migrating to charter and fractional programs could make for more elastic demand should there be a general economic downturn, accelerating an exodus of users from the industry.
• Conversely, record corporate profits, a still expanding UHNWI base, and a strong expected M&A and IPO year remain meaningful tailwinds for demand