North American March private jet flying jumps 6.6% YoY in March

In March 2026, private jet flying in North America recorded a significant year-over-year gain of 6.6%.

Previously, ARGUS TRAQPak analysis estimated an increase of about 3.9% compared to last March.

However, ARGUS analysts now expect the gains to slow slightly this month.

It estimates a year-over-year increase of 3.9% in April 2026 compared to April 2025.

Although the conflict in the Middle East slowed private jet flight activity in the region, global private jet traffic remained strong.

Travis Kuhn, Senior Vice President of Software at ARGUS, spoke with Private Jet Card Comparisons about the industry’s resilience over the past month.

Kuhn stated:

‘March activity stayed resilient amidst a host of challenges from the conflict in the Middle East. We saw activity in the Middle East decline over 50% in March and fuel prices spike globally, but activity still posted significant gains in the U.S. and around the world. We do expect April to remain positive in North America but given the current environment of uncertainty, we could see activity flatten out during April. At this time we have no reason to expect any type of decline in North America but we will pay close attention.’

Overall, private jets in North America averaged more than 10,100 flights per day throughout March.

This was a significant increase from the daily average of 9,500 flights per day recorded last March.

This led to a year-over-year increase of about 6.6%.

Private Jet Growth

In terms of aircraft types, the small-cabin-jet segment led the way, with an 11.5% increase in overall flights.

However, both the turboprop and midsize cabin jet segments also saw gains.

Turboprops recorded about 5.8% more flights, while midsize cabin jets saw about 6.4% more flights.

The smallest gain was seen by the large cabin jet segment, recording only 0.4% more flights than last March.

Additionally, North America also saw a significant month-over-month increase in flights.

This is somewhat expected given the calendar variance and the fact that February is a shorter month.

Overall, the month-over-month increase reached about 13.3%.

However, the number of flights per day increased by only about 2.3% compared to February.

Monthly increases were also observed across all major provider segments.

Fractional operations increased by 17.9%, Part 135 operations increased by 14.9%, and Part 91K flights increased by about 9.9%.

Additionally, every major region in North America saw double-digit month-over-month increases.

The central region saw a monthly gain of about 16.3%, the largest in the U.S.

Additionally, the Southern region saw the largest increase in total flights, adding 12,416 in March 2026.

Private jet flight activity also showed growth in Canada and the Caribbean. Canada recorded 11.8% more flights than February, while the Caribbean saw a 26.4% month-over-month gain.

Fractional Operators

Private jets in the fractional segment saw the largest gain, recording 13.8% more flights than in March 2025.

Multiple segments saw double-digit year-over-year increases.

The small cabin jet market saw a 22.7% jump, the largest individual segment increase.

Meanwhile, the midsize cabin jet market saw a 12.0% jump, another strong showing.

Additionally, the turboprop segment remained strong, recording 7.1% more flights than last year.

The smallest growth was seen in the large-cabin-jet market, although the segment still saw 5.5% more flights.

Part 135 Operators

Part 135 operations also saw a significant year-over-year increase of about 6.5%.

Growth was a bit slower than in the fractional segment, with the midsize cabin market leading the way, recording 9.2% more flights than last year.

Small cabin jets and turboprops each saw significant increases, with small cabin jets conducting 8.2% more flights and turboprops conducting 5.0% more flights.

The large-cabin jet market followed global trends, recording only 1.9% more flights than last March.

Part 91 Activity

The Part 91 business segment saw the slowest growth of major operations, recording 3.5% more flights than last year.

The small cabin market remained strong, recording 9.1% more flights than last March.

Additionally, turboprops recorded a respectable increase of about 6.4%.

However, several segments saw slight decreases. The large cabin jet segment saw 2.1% fewer flights, while the midsize cabin jet market saw 4.1% fewer flights.

These were the only two individual segments to record year-over-year drops in North America.