Argus: Bizav Flying Up in April despite Mideast Turmoil

Business aviation flying last month climbed 3.4% year over year, according to industry data tracker Argus International’s latest global aircraft activity report.

North America, the industry’s leading market, posted a 3.5% YOY increase in April, led by the fractional segment, which posted a 13% gain. While Part 135 operations rose by 4.5%, Part 91 usage fell into negative territory, down 1.5%. Across all aircraft classes, light jets had a nearly 8% boost in the region, while large-cabin use fared the worst, off by 5.8%.

Compared to March, North American business aviation activity declined 3.8% month over month, an outcome that was not unexpected, according to Argus senior v-p of software Travis Kuhn. “March is usually a top month for activity in the year; it has 31 days, and you have spring break travel,” he told AIN. “As a result, we typically see a month-over-month decline in activity from March to April.”

In Europe, activity for April was up by nearly 2% over the previous year. As in North America, the large-cabin segment saw erosion, off by half a point YOY.

Even with the Middle East posting a nearly 50% decline in business aviation flights compared to April 2025, the rest of the world posted a 3.1% yearly activity gain. Once again, the large-cabin jets lost the most ground, off 6.8% YOY and 8.8% from the previous month.

“Activity held strong in April, but there are signs of weakening in many spots,” said Kuhn. “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.” Gazing ahead, he added, “We see May looking positive in North America, but that is certainly subject to change.”