Scott Wallace, pilot, CFI, and Stratos Jets franchise owner. Published October 5, 2026.
The month in brief
U.S. business jet departures in the four weeks to September 27 were up 1% from the same weeks last year, with charter and fractional flying up 3%. Jet fuel averaged $4.36 a gallon on the Gulf Coast spot market.
Flight activity
Across the United States, business jets made 218,787 departures in the four weeks from August 31 through September 27, up 1% from the same four weeks of 2025. Charter and fractional operators, which mostly fly under Part 135 and Part 91K, accounted for 122,108 of them, up 3% from a year earlier.
Globally, business jet departures were up 1%, with North America up 1% and Europe up 3%. The state table below shows the same comparison week by week for California, Florida, and Texas.
Four-week figures cover August 31, 2026 to September 27, 2026.
Swipe sideways to see every week.
- United States+1%
- North America+1%
- Europe+3%
- Global+1%
| Week ending | California | Florida | Texas |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 6, 2026 | -3.5% | -5.8% | -2.9% |
| September 13, 2026 | -8.2% | +9.5% | +3.1% |
| September 20, 2026 | -1.4% | -3.1% | +4.8% |
| September 27, 2026 | -0.3% | +8.7% | +6.4% |
The ARGUS monthly read
ARGUS TRAQPak, which reports North American flight activity each month, said private jet flights in North America in August were up 0.3% from August 2025.
Source: ARGUS TRAQPak via Private Jet Card Comparisons. ARGUS figures are for August 2026.
Jet fuel
U.S. Gulf Coast jet fuel averaged $4.36 a gallon on the spot market in September, up 17.5% from August and up 108.6% from September 2025. Operators buy fuel at the airport, and a sustained move in fuel can show up in what a trip costs.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, U.S. Gulf Coast kerosene-type jet fuel spot price (weekly)
What charter costs
Hourly rates by aircraft class are below, and every one is an estimate. These are the same typical ranges published across this site, not a September measurement. A real quote also depends on where the aircraft is based, the dates, repositioning, and fees and taxes, which is why two quotes for the same trip can differ.
| Aircraft class | Estimated hourly range |
|---|---|
| Turboprop | Est. $1,800-$3,000 / hr |
| Very Light Jet | Est. $3,200-$4,500 / hr |
| Light Jet | Est. $4,000-$5,000 / hr |
| Midsize Jet | Est. $4,500-$7,000 / hr |
| Super-Midsize | Est. $7,000-$9,000 / hr |
| Heavy Jet | Est. $8,000-$12,000 / hr |
| Ultra Long Range | Est. $12,000-$16,000+ / hr |
Typical hourly ranges are estimates for planning only. Your quote depends on aircraft, routing, fuel and fees. These ranges exclude taxes and segment fees, which are included in your final all-in quote.
The Colorado view
Over the past year, Colorado ranked 3rd of 49 in Google Trends search interest for private jet charter, a list that counts Washington, D.C. alongside the states. Among charter searches in Colorado, the ones rising fastest over that year are mostly about what a flight costs and which charter company to use.
Top searches
- private jet charter
- private jet cost
- private jet flights
- charter a private jet
- charter private jet cost
Rising searches
- how much is a private jet flight (Breakout)
- best private jet charter companies (+300%)
- how much to charter a private jet (+140%)
- private jet charter (+40%)
- charter private jet cost (+40%)
Source: Google Trends
From the broker
Scott's take
If a mountain trip over the holidays is on your calendar, ask for options now. Suitable aircraft tighten up fast around the holidays, and having two choices on the table is better than one.
Scott Wallace, pilot, CFI, and Stratos Jets franchise owner
What to watch
Ski season is the next demand wave. Demand into Colorado's mountain airports typically runs from Thanksgiving through spring break and peaks over the year-end holidays.
Aspen/Pitkin County Airport has announced that its runway will close from April 4 to November 19, 2027, which overlaps the end of the 2026 to 2027 ski season. Plan Aspen trips in that window through Eagle County (KEGE) or Rifle (KRIL).
Sources and method
Flight activity figures are WingX data, from the WingX tables Private Jet Card Comparisons publishes and, for the state table, the WINGX Weekly Bulletin. They are shown as first published, and the market figures in a published month are never updated afterward. Because WingX revises earlier weeks, the weekly bars, each shown as first published, may not add up to the four-week total. The four-week figures are WingX's own rolling totals for the weeks named, not our calculation.
Fuel is the average of the U.S. Energy Information Administration's weekly Gulf Coast spot prices for weeks ending in the month. For September that is the four weeks ending September 4, September 11, September 18, and September 25. Search interest is from Google Trends and covers the past year as of the day this report was built, and the related searches shown are limited to those about chartering.
We do not publish Colorado flight counts, because we have no public source for them, and we do not publish rates from booking platforms or our own quotes.