March in the Skies, by the Numbers
Figures compiled by the EBAA (European Business Aviation Association) and WINGX for March show 56,870 departures operated by 4,420 aircraft to 992 active airports and 24,518 airport pairs. In the same month, there were 56,873 arrivals registered, operated by 4,437 aircraft to 1,414 active airports and 24,529 airport pairs.
Most departures (93.9%) were intra-European, with 53,420 flights to destinations within Europe. Departures to Asia were in second place with 1,339 flights, and departures to North America came in a close third with 1,181 flights.
The top five airports by departures in March were:
Paris Le Bourget (2,400 departures)
Geneva Cointrin (1,557 departures)
Farnborough Airport, London (1,166 departures)
Luton Airport, London (1,094 departures)
Zurich Airport (1,080 departures)
The top five airports by arrivals in March were:
Paris Le Bourget (2,382 arrivals)
Geneva Cointrin (1,539 arrivals)
Farnborough Airport, London (1,155 arrivals)
Nice Côte d’Azur (1,103 arrivals)
Luton Airport, London (1,108 arrivals)
Notably, Zurich airport came in a very close sixth with 1,107 arrivals in March.
The top five airport pairs by departures in March were:
Paris Le Bourget to Geneva Cointrin (205 flights)
Geneva Cointrin to Paris Le Bourget (194 flights)
Paris Le Bourget to Nice Côte d’Azur (97 flights)
Nice Côte d’Azur to Paris Le Bourget (95 flights)
Geneva Cointrin to Nice Côte d’Azur (76 flights)
The five most frequently flown jets by departures in March were:
Cessna Citation Excel/XLS Super Light Jet with 4,104 departures.
Embraer Phenom 300 Light Jet with 3,101 departures.
Dassault Falcon 2000 Heavy Jet with 1,997 departures.
Cessna Citation CJ2 Light Jet with 1,880 departures.
Cessna Citation Mustang Very Light Jet with 1,812 departures.
The three most active jets in the skies over Europe, by fleet size in March were:
Bombardier Global Express/6000/6500 Ultra Long Range Jets with an active fleet of 277 aircraft and 1,589 departures, flying an average trip distance of 2,466 km (average 3.1 hrs duration).
Gulfstream GV/500/550 Ultra Long Range Jets with an active fleet of 271 aircraft and 954 departures, flying an average trip distance of 2,468 km (average 3.5 hrs duration).
Gulfstream G600/650 Ultra Long Range Jets with an active fleet of 231 aircraft and 875 departures, flying an average trip distance of 3,000 km (average 3.6 hrs duration).
While long-range jets take the top three spots by fleet size, a few aircraft in the Bizliner categories flew the longest routes.
The three most extended business aviation trips departing Europe in March were:
Boeing 737 Max 8 Bizliner—single aircraft registered two departures with an average trip distance of 8,027 km (average 8.6 hrs duration)
Boeing 747-400 Bizliner—seven aircraft reported eleven departures with an average trip distance of 6,238 km (average 6.3 hrs duration).
Airbus A340-500 Bizliner—single aircraft registered two departures with an average trip distance of 6,030 km (average 6.5 hrs duration).
Business Aviation growth is down, but not everywhere.
The start of 2023 reflected a downturn in business aviation activity compared to last year, though still ahead of 2021. The latest traffic tracker report by EBAA (February) shows that business flights in Europe have experienced a decline, down 8% compared to February 2022, but still 49% higher than February 2021.
Some countries have bucked this downward trend. The State of Play report (February) shows:
Turkey registered the most robust growth (70%) in February 2023 (compared to February 2022) with 4,428 flights and 43% YTD with 7,421 flights.
Italy—1% growth in February 2023 with 7,695 flights and 5% YTD with 14,621 flights.
Sweden—1% growth in February with 3,180 flights and 5% YTD with 6,429 flights.
Greece—14% growth for the month with 1,404 flights and 6% YTD with 2,459 flights.
Ireland—9% growth in February with 1,024 flights and 4% YTD with 1,969 flights.
Romania—6% growth for the month with 1,028 flights and 4% YTD with 1,790 flights.
Other countries showing growth, though with lower traffic figures, include:
Slovakia—10% in February (526 flights) and 7% YTD (1,022 flights).
Bulgaria—3% in February (381 flights) and 3% YTD (691 flights).
Bosnia and Herzegovina—25% in February (91 flights) and 31% YTD (182 flights)
With the typically more active late spring and summer seasons still ahead, it will be interesting to see how the skies shape up in the second quarter of 2023.