What's driving business aircraft flying? Seefeld Group and JIQ launch UtilizationEx to examine demand

Seefeld Group and JIQ, the market intelligence platform of JETNET have announced the launch of UtilizationEx, a new global Seefeld Group survey combining JIQ flight activity intelligence, drawing on JETNET’s WINGX data, with operator insights into sentiment, intentions and decision-making to better understand the drivers of business aircraft utilization and forecast future demand.

Business aviation has increasingly sophisticated data showing how much aircraft are flying and how activity is changing. But flight activity measures realized use - not necessarily the underlying demand or the factors shaping future utilization.

Aircraft availability, maintenance downtime, fleet transitions, economic and geopolitical conditions, crew availability, operating costs and other factors can prevent mission demand from being fully reflected in observed utilization.

Latest JIQ flight activity data for September shows global business jet activity about 3% above 2025 levels year to date. While utilization growth is a strong positive signal, it alone does not reveal if underlying demand factors are signaling a continuation into the future at the same level.

The distinction matters because observed utilization may not fully reflect underlying demand. Stronger mission needs and enthusiasm can increase flying for an aircraft, while aircraft availability, maintenance, crew constraints and other capacity factors can suppress it. Improvements in these areas can also signal stronger future utilization.

UtilizationEx will examine these demand and operating drivers - including mission requirements, aircraft availability, maintenance, training, operating economics, fleet composition, lifecycle considerations and owner priorities / attitudes - with quantitative findings segmented and trended by aircraft category, geography, manufacturer and fleet size.

JIQ provides the observed view of aircraft flying activity. UtilizationEx will add the operator perspective - intended use, underlying demand and the factors shaping utilization. Together, the research is intended to show not only what aircraft are doing, but why activity and attitudes are changing and what those usage patterns may ultimately indicate about future aircraft demand over the medium to long term.

“Flight activity data does a tremendous job of telling us what operators were able to fly. But it does not tell us what they were thinking or what influenced their behaviour,” said Charles Porteous, President of Seefeld Group. “Actual aircraft use reflects the combined effect of mission requirements, aircraft availability, maintenance, operating economics and owner enthusiasm to use business aviation. Understanding those drivers is essential to interpreting utilization correctly and improving forecasts of future flying demand.”

“JIQ’s flight activity analysis provides detailed visibility into how business aircraft activity is changing around the world,” said Richard Koe, Chief Market Analyst, JETNET Group. “UtilizationEx adds the operator perspective needed to explain those movements and what they may mean for future market demand.”

UtilizationEx is a Seefeld Group research initiative, developed and led by Seefeld in partnership with marketing research expert Ad Hoc Research. Seefeld will lead aviation research strategy, analysis and interpretation, while Seefeld and Ad Hoc will collaborate on research design and execution. JIQ will support the initiative with flight activity intelligence drawing on JETNET’s WINGX data and its industry expertise. Findings will be reported on an aggregated and confidential basis.

Data collection for the inaugural UtilizationEx study is planned for Q1 2027, with results expected in Q2 2027. Results will be available by subscription, including analysis of expected utilization, underlying demand and the operational, financial and behavioural factors shaping aircraft use across key market segments.

BlueSky Business Aviation News | 22nd October 2026 | Issue #863