ARGUS TRAQPak analysts expect this positive growth to continue into May with a 2.1% year-over-year increase.
A 7.9% increase in light jet flying helped April 2026 private jet flight activity in North America to another year-over-year increase.
According to ARGUS TRAQPak analysts, private jets recorded approximately 3.5% more flights than in April last year.
Last month, ARGUS TRAQPak analysts expected April to see a year-over-year increase of about 3.9%.
The ARGUS analysts expect growth to continue into May.
They are forecasting a 2.1% year-over-year increase.
Travis Kuhn, Senior Vice President at ARGUS, spoke with Private Jet Card Comparisons.
He stated:
‘Activity held strong in April, but there are signs of weakening in many spots. Large cabin activity was off in North America, European growth slowed down much more than expected, and activity in the Middle East remains off about 50% from normal. As of now, we see May looking positive in North America, but that is certainly subject to change.’
Compared to last April, private jets in North America recorded approximately 3.5% more flights.
In terms of specific private jet classes, the small-cabin market saw the most significant year-over-year growth, recording 7.9% more flights this past month than last April.
Additionally, the turboprop segment saw a 5.2% year-over-year gain, while the midsize market saw a 2.7% year-over-year increase.
However, the large cabin jet segment struggled in April.
The market saw a 5.8% year-over-year decline, the only private jet class to not post year-over-year gains.
Additionally, April saw fewer flights than in March, recording about 3.8% fewer flights month-over-month.
Even so, the daily flights declined by only 0.6%, meaning the overall decrease was larger due to calendar variance.
Part 135 operations saw the largest drop, with 5.4% fewer flights than in March.
Additionally, Part 91 operations declined by about 3.0% and fractional operations declined by about 2.7% month-over-month.
Only three regions of North America saw month-over-month increases.
New England saw the largest increase, seeing 10.4% more flights.
On the other hand, the Pacific Northwest saw the largest drop of about 23.3%.
Canada recorded a slight increase of about 1.0% more flights compared to March, while the Caribbean saw 18.2% fewer flights month-over-month.
The fractional segment saw the largest year-over-year gain in April. The industry saw approximately 13% more flights than in April 2025.
Several aircraft classes saw double-digit gains.
The small cabin segment saw the largest, recording 16.1% more flights.
However, the midsize market also saw a year-over-year gain of about 13.2%.
Additionally, both the turboprop class and the large cabin jet class recorded a year-over-year jump of 6.7%.
Part 135 operations also saw a significant year-over-year increase, recording 4.5% more flights than in April 2025.
This past month, the small cabin jet segment saw the largest increase, recording 8.5% more flights year-over-year.
Both the turboprop and midsize markets also recorded year-over-year gains.
The turboprop segment saw a 5.6% jump, while the midsize jet market saw a 5.5% jump.
However, the large-cabin jet segment struggled in April, recording 4.7% fewer flights than in the same month last year.
Part 91 operations struggled in North America in April.
The industry recorded a 1.5% decrease compared to last April.
The midsize market saw the largest drop, recording 13.0% fewer flights than last year.
The large-cabin market also struggled, with 9.7% fewer flights year-over-year.
Even so, the small cabin jet and turboprop markets remained strong.
The turboprop segment recorded 4.9% more flights, while small cabin jets recorded 4.4% more flights year-over-year.
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