Global business jet activity reached 78,671 departures in Week 43 (20–26 October), up 3% year-on-year, according to WingX Weekly Global Market Tracker. Over the past four weeks, aircraft have logged more than 315,000 departures, a 5% increase compared to the same period last year. The alignment between the four-week and year-to-date trends indicates a levelling in growth ahead of the Thanksgiving travel period.

North America underperformed the global average, up only 1% in Week 43. The U.S. contributed over 95% of the region’s flights. Among key states, Texas grew 3%, Florida was flat and California declined 7%. The four-week regional trend remained 5% higher than 2024, with Texas and Florida leading at 6%.

Europe outpaced North America with a 5% increase. The UK, France and Italy each saw double-digit gains (12%, 12% and 11% respectively) while Switzerland rose 8% and Germany slipped 1%. Ultra long-range jet activity surged over 20%, supported by a 50% rise in New York–London flights.

The rest of world region continued its strong performance, with 14% growth led by South America’s 39% rise and Africa’s 25%. Monterrey–Mexico City and São Paulo–Rio de Janeiro corridors both expanded more than 35%. The Middle East edged up 1%, while Asia declined 1%.

At Textron, leadership transitioned as Scott Donnelly stepped down and Lisa Atherton assumed the CEO role after 18 years with the company. Atherton takes charge as Cessna business jets reached over one million flights year-to-date through 26 October. Departures rose 2% compared to last year and stood 29% above 2019 levels. The super light Citation Excel/XLS led activity with nearly 200,000 flights, up 3%, followed by the Citation Latitude with 175,000 flights, up 7%. Combined, these platforms account for 12% of global business jet departures this year.

Fractional operators generated 22% of Cessna’s activity, reinforcing its strength in shared ownership and fleet operations.

Nick Koscinski, WingX analyst, says: “We’re still up 5% for the year, which is solid, even if Week 43 shows the market cooling down a bit after that strong run we had in September and October. Europe had a really strong week, with the UK, France and Italy all growing more than 10%, and South America’s 39% jump is significant. Lisa Atherton’s timing is pretty good stepping into the Textron CEO role, and Cessna’s having a great year with over a million flights, while we see the Excel and Latitude platforms really driving that performance.”