Flight activity for the first half of 2019 was up 0.3% compared to the same period in 2018, however, it was a varied report when it came to where the gains came from. Flight hours were up 0.7% during the same period.
Flying by fractional fleet operators was the star in the first half of 2019, according to an analysis of private aviation flying by Traqpak. Fractional activity reported the strongest mid-year gain, up 6.2% during the first six months of 2019. Part 91 flight activity was up 0.7%, while Part 135 flight activity, which represents on-demand charter and jet cards, was down 2.2% for the period.
Traqpak reports, “After moving towards a cooling trend in 2018, the Part 135 segment has spent all of 2019 in the red as each of the six months has declined from 2018.”
It continues, “The Fractional industry, on the other hand, has produced yearly gains during all six months of 2019 and the Part 91 segment has also been mostly positive in 2019 with gains in four of the six months.
Looking ahead, after a relatively flat first half of 2019, Traqpak analysts are expecting flight activity to increase during the second half of 2019. It estimates that flight activity from July to December of 2019 will rise by 2.0% over the same period in 2018, including a gain every month except August, where it projects a 0.7% decline.
The strongest month is expected to be September, with a forecasted increase of 4.6%, followed by December, which is anticipated to rise by 3.3%. November is third with an expected gain of 2.4%, followed by October and July which expect to see rises of 1.7% & 1.0% respectively.
| Aircraft Category | 2018 | 2019 | % Change |
| Turboprops | 483,685 | 481,648 | -0.4% |
| Small Cabin | 370,980 | 364,439 | -1.8% |
| Mid-Size Cabin | 440,960 | 455,293 | 3.3% |
| Large Cabin | 235,848 | 234,491 | -0.6% |
In terms of types, midsize private jets were the only cabin category showing a gain, with a 3.3% increase in flight activity. Turboprop flying dipped 0.4% over the first half of the year with large cabin activity down 0.6%. Light jets saw flying drop 1.8%. Super midsize aircraft are part of the midsize data.
Who falls into which categories. Below is how Traqpak breaks down the private aviation activity in the above numbers.
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