The FAA is urging aircraft owners and operators selected for its 47th Annual General Aviation and Part 135 Activity Survey to complete the brief questionnaire, emphasizing the role of the data in shaping safety metrics, infrastructure planning, and regulatory decisions.
Now underway, the 2025 survey, which reports on 2024 flight data, was sent to a statistically selected sample of U.S. aircraft owners, with turbine, rotorcraft, and Alaska-based aircraft surveyed at a 100% rate. Roughly 30% of the total general aviation (GA) fleet is sampled each year, with lighter aircraft such as piston singles surveyed at a lower rate.
As the only official source of GA fleet and flight-hour data in the U.S., the survey provides the foundation for tracking activity trends, calculating accident rates, evaluating the impact of regulatory changes, and planning for National Airspace System needs. The NTSB’s GA accident rate, for example, uses this data as a denominator, since the GA sector is not subject to mandatory reporting like airline operations.
Introduced in 1978, the survey replaced the voluntary second half of an older FAA form, the Aircraft Registration Eligibility, Identification, and Activity Report, and has undergone regular revisions to keep pace with changing technology, equipment, and operational patterns. In recent years, updates have included more detailed questions on avionics, aircraft use categories, and fuel consumption.
“The GA survey provides a cornerstone to FAA, NTSB, and the aviation industry’s work to advance aviation safety,” said Jens Hennig, v-p of operations, safety, and security at the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. Hennig emphasized the balance the voluntary format strikes between data needs and owner burden.
NBAA also chimed in on the survey in February this year, encouraging members to respond to survey requests. “The GA Survey is a key tool for understanding business aviation and the broader general aviation landscape,” said NBAA director of safety and flight operations Mark Larsen. “It offers insights into specific operational sectors and plays a vital role in assessing general aviation system safety performance.”
FAA officials note that all survey responses are confidential and processed only by the agency’s contractor. The survey typically takes 15 minutes to complete, and officials say each response has an impact on national metrics and long-term planning. Aircraft owners who operate three or more aircraft are encouraged to request a short-form version.