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Bay Area airports process 3x the normal traffic as Seahawks defeat Patriots

More than 1,000 arrivals over four-day period

The 60th annual NFL Super Bowl on 8th February drew substantial business jet activity to Santa Clara, California, where the Seattle Seahawks routed the New England Patriots.

WINGX analysis shows Bay Area airports recorded over 1,000 business jet arrivals during the four-day period leading up to and including game day, representing 2x more arrivals compared to normal February traffic levels.

Day-after departures reached nearly 600 on Monday 9th February, as corporate guests and attendees returned home following the championship game. This represents a surge ratio of 3x compared to the Bay Area’s typical February daily average business jet departures.

Super Bowl LX still ranked only 7th amongst the last 10 Super Bowl events for day-after departures, well below the record set by Super Bowl LVII in Phoenix in 2023, which posted just over 950 day-after departures.

Day-after Super Bowl Bizjet Departures Surge.

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Day-after Super Bowl Bizjet Departures Surge Ratio*.

*Surge Ratio is event traffic divided by average traffic.

Multi-airport system absorbs traffic

The Bay Area’s multi-airport system proved critical in managing the influx of bizjet traffic, with Metropolitan Oakland International Airport processing 32% of Super Bowl arrivals, while San Francisco International and San Jose Mineta International airports served the overflow, with each taking 22% of total traffic.

Super Midsize jets lead arrivals

Aircraft type analysis of the more than 1,000 bizjet arrivals into San Francisco Bay Area airports from 5th-8th February reveals super-midsize jets dominated traffic, accounting for the largest share of arrivals. The Bombardier Challenger 300/350 led all aircraft types with 128 arrivals (12% of total traffic), followed by other super-midsize platforms including the Cessna Citation Latitude (64 arrivals, 6% share) and Cessna Citation Longitude (50 arrivals, 5% share).

5th-8th February San Francisco airport arrivals and share of arrivals.

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Historical Comparison: Super Bowl 50 vs Super Bowl 60

The Bay Area previously hosted Super Bowl 50 in 2016 at the same Levi’s Stadium venue. That event also generated nearly 600 departures on the day after the Super Bowl but had a 5x surge ratio compared to typical February traffic in 2016, compared to the almost 3x surge ratio realized this year.

The lower 2026 surge ratio despite similar overall departures volumes indicates that business jet activity in the Bay Area has increased substantially in the past decade. In other words, what once represented a 5x surge ratio above normal activity now registers as a 3x surge, not because the Super Bowl drew fewer jets, but because “normal” February bizjet traffic has grown significantly. This demonstrates how the Bay Area business aviation market has matured, with daily operations now at levels that would have been considered exceptional a decade ago.

Nick Koscinski, WINGX analyst comments, “Super Bowl LX delivered over 1,000 bizjet arrivals and showed exactly what we expected from a Bay Area event. What’s most interesting is comparing this year’s traffic surge to the Bay Area’s 2016 Super Bowl. The day-after departures were nearly identical in 2016 and 2026, but the surge ratio this year dropped from 5x to about 3x.

"That’s not because fewer jets showed up, rather it’s because normal February traffic has grown so much over the past decade, so what used to be an exceptional day of San Francisco bizjet traffic in 2016, is now closer to “normal” in 2026. As business aviation continues to grow, the Super Bowl will remain a marquee event, drawing corporates and celebrities to witness the crowning of that year’s NFL champion.”

Global Executive Summary

Global business jet activity has increased 1.0% year-to-date through early February, with South America leading growth at 5.2% YTD, followed by Asia’s 3.5% YTD growth, while the world’s largest market North America expanded just 0.5%. However, the 1.0% YTD growth in 2026 vs 2025 represents a significant deceleration from the 3.7% growth rate achieved during the same period in 2025 vs 2024. In Week 06, global bizjet traffic was flat, while emerging markets in South America and the Middle East saw strong growth.

Global Bizjet Departures Trends YTD (1st Jan-8th Feb).

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WINGX GmbH
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BlueSky Business Aviation News | 12th February 2026 | Issue #830