McKinsey’s inaugural State of Business Aviation in 2026 report identifies a widening capacity challenge for the global business-aviation sector: securing crews, delivery slots, hangars, maintenance and airport access is becoming as important as obtaining aircraft. Business-jet departures reached a record 3.9 million in 2025, while aircraft utilisation and demand for leisure destinations continued to rise.
Departures grew at an average annual rate of 4.9% between 2019 and 2025, and the average aircraft flew about 19% more hours last year than before the pandemic. In the United States, flights to leisure airports increased 5.4% annually, compared with 2.1% growth at traditional business destinations. Leisure airports accounted for 326,000 of the 417,000 additional US departures recorded over the period.
Manufacturers delivered 842 business jets in 2025, only about 65% of the 1,290-aircraft peak recorded in 2008. The global fleet nevertheless grew by 730 aircraft, largely because retirements fell to roughly 110 from about 300 in 2019. McKinsey cautions that ageing aircraft approaching major maintenance checks or retirement could create another supply squeeze as replacement aircraft remain expensive and MRO capacity is limited.
Fractional fleets expanded from 990 aircraft in 2019 to 1,510 in 2025, while their share of business-jet flight hours rose from 14% to 20%. Operators and suppliers are expected to secure capacity earlier, improve utilisation and invest in MRO, infrastructure and technology. Further consolidation among operators, FBOs and MRO providers is also likely as the customer base becomes younger, more digital and geographically dispersed.