Story ID: 
Argus: Global Bizav Operations See July Momentum
By: Kerry Lynch
Caption: Business aircraft flights were up 3.7% YOY in July
Word Count: 323
Global business aircraft flight activity climbed 3.7% year over year (YOY) in July, with the North America region alone matching that gain, according to the latest TraqPak report from industry analyst Argus International. Europe, meanwhile, experienced its third consecutive YOY increase in July, up 1.8%. With that momentum, Argus expects flight activity this month in North America to be up 2% and in Europe by 0.2% YOY.
“July activity continues to show a very strong market for business aviation in North America and beyond,” said Travis Kuhn, senior v-p of software at Argus. “Normally, we see a slowdown in traditional business jet travel in August, and we expect that again this year. We still expect activity to gain on a macro level, but when we correct for holiday impacts, we should see activity decline slightly in August.”
Kuhn added that the industry is well-positioned for a busy fall and holiday season.
In North America during July, all operational categories saw gains, with fractionals continuing to lead the charge, up 8.6% YOY. Part 135 activity rose by 1.3%, while Part 91 flying increased by 3.7%, mirroring the global and North America-specific gains.
By aircraft category, light jets led for the third month in a row, rising 5.4% YOY in July, followed by turboprops, +4.4%; large jets, +4.3%; and midsize jets, +1.4%. The single biggest jump in individual segments came with large jet fractional operations, up 17.9%. All but one of the individual segments were positive, with Part 135 midsize-jet operations inching down by 1.9%.
In Europe, large-cabin jets notched the strongest improvement, up 6.6% YOY in July, followed by midsize jets at 3.4%. However, turboprop and light-jet activity were on the negative side, down by 3.5% and 1.3%, respectively.
Other regions of the world combine for a 5.5% increase, with light jets marking the most notable jump with an 18.4% increase. This was followed by large-cabin jets, which were up 7.9%. Midsize jets and turboprops came in with 2.3% and 2.1% improvements, respectively.