North American Bizav Flying Hits Turbulence in July

Business aircraft flying in the U.S., Caribbean and Canada dove 2.1 percent year-over-year last month as Part 91 activity slowed, according to TraqPak data released Friday by business aviation services group Argus International. The company had projected a 0.6-percent rise in flight activity over last July. Argus analysts are more optimistic about this month, predicting a 4.5-percent increase from August 2015.

Results by operational category were mixed last month. Part 91 flying sunk 5 percent from a year ago, with declines recorded in every individual aircraft category. Meanwhile, Part 135 activity edged up 0.5 percent, while fractionals logged a 2.7-percent gain.

Flight activity by aircraft categories was down across the board last month, with large-cabin jets leading the erosion with a 6.2-percent year-over-year decrease. Turboprop flying fell 2.9 percent from a year ago, while light and midsize jets experienced declines of 0.6 percent and 0.4 percent, respectively.

Once again, Part 135 turboprop flying saw the largest gain in individual segments, rising 17.9 percent over July 2015. The biggest drop was seen in Part 91 large-cabin jets, which lagged by 9.3 percent from a year ago.

Argus TraqPak data provides “flight-number-specific aircraft arrival and departure information on all IFR flights in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean.”