WINGX Global Market Tracker:

Business jets buck broader US travel decline

In Week 50 (8-14 Dec) 2025, global bizjet activity notched nearly 74,800 departures, only 1% busier than Week 50 2024. On a rolling last four-week basis (W47-W50), global business jets have reached just over 303,000 departures, a 4% increase compared to the same period last year.

This four-week trend of 4% is slightly underperforming the global year-to-date (1 Jan-14 Dec) trend of 5% compared to 2024.

Through 14 December, global business jet activity reached 3.7 million departures, up 5% year-over-year. North America, the industry’s largest market with 2.6 million flights, mirrored this 5% growth rate. Europe, the second largest market, posted more muted gains of just 1%.

Markets outside of North America and Europe demonstrated the strongest performance, with Africa leading at 15% growth, followed by South America (10%), the Middle East (8%), and Asia (4%).

Year-to-date (1 Jan – 14 Dec) United States business jet activity by top cities.

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Year-to-date (1 Jan – 14 Dec) excluding United States business jet activity by top cities.

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Note: City bizjet activity reflects aggregate flight departures from airports in the associated metro area.

Highlight of the Week: International US bizjet arrivals up 4% as overall visitors fall 5%

According to data from the International Trade Administration, international visitors that stay in the US for one night or more fell by more than 5% January through September 2025 year-over-year. Canada, Germany, France, and India were among some of the countries to see the largest drops, while visitors from Canada declined by nearly 3.5 million alone.

This raises the question: is international business jet travel into the United States following similar trends? WINGX data on international arrivals from January through September tells a different story. Rather than declining, international business jet arrivals into the US increased 4% compared to the same period in 2024.

Among the countries that saw the steepest drops in overall visitor numbers (Canada, Germany, France, India), only India saw YOY declines in bizjet traffic this year, with 5 flights in 2024 and 0 in 2025. The other countries all saw business jet arrivals increase by approximately 1%, showcasing how business aviation can remain insulated from broader travel trends.

January through September 2025 international visitors to the US (Source: International Trade Administration; Statista).

Regional Performance Analysis

North America: First sluggish week in recent period
The North American market slightly underperformed the global trend with stagnant growth activity in W50 2025 compared to W50 2024. The United States, North America’s growth engine, matched this trend, seeing no growth or declines year-over-year. On a key state level, California led growth in W50 at 4% year-over-year, followed by Florida with 2% expansion, while Texas realized a 1% retraction. North America’s rolling four-week trend now sits at 3% ahead of the comparable period in 2024.

Among the key states, both Florida and Texas are 5% ahead of the comparable four-week period, while California is 3% ahead. On a year-to-date level (1 Jan-14 Dec) in the United States, the Southwest region saw the strongest growth at 6% ahead of 2024. All states in the Southwest region (Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico) realized growth, driven by Texas (70% of the region’s traffic) growing at 6%, while Louisiana (9% of traffic) realized the strongest expansion at 11%.

Europe: Switzerland leads with 12% expansion
European business jet flights were up 4% YOY in W50, with regional differences: Bizjet departures from Switzerland led growth at 12% vs W50 last year; demand for bizjets in the UK and Italy saw modest single-digit growth, at 5% and 3% respectively; bizjet flights in Germany expanded at a muted 1% rate; demand for bizjets in France slumped 2%.

Europe’s four-week trend (W47-W50) is up 1% compared to last year, matching the year-to-date (1 Jan-14 Dec) trend of 1%. On a year-to-date basis, country-level activity was a mixed bag. Europe’s top country France (16% of the region’s flights) was flat on the year, realizing no gains or declines; Italy (12% of activity) and Spain (10% of activity) both saw strong single-digit growth at 6%; Germany (which accounts for 11% of the region’s activity) realized a 5% decline.

Rest of World: Brazil powers South America to 13% growth
In other regions, bizjet activity was up by 8% in Week 50 YOY, with ROW traffic accounting for 11% of global bizjet departures in W50. Airports in South America saw bizjet flight activity up 13%, followed by Asia, departures up 12%, then Africa at 3%, and finally the lone region to experience declines, the Middle East at -5%.

South America, the leading growth sub-region last week, saw its largest market Brazil (35% of flights last week), up more than 20%. The ROW region is also seeing strong trends on a rolling four-week basis (W47-W50).

Africa leads this four-week trend at 21% ahead of the comparable period last year, followed by South America at 18% ahead, then Asia at 11%, finally with the Middle East 6% ahead.

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BlueSky Business Aviation News | 18th December 2025 | Issue #824