Private aviation’s first post-COVID boom George Mattson, the CEO of Wheels Up, says that most of these passengers were leisure travelers who had switched from commercial airlines to Wheels Up due to health reasons. He says, “You had new people coming into private aviation.” Once you’ve tried it, you don’t want stop. The rise in remote work has kept business travel below the pre-pandemic level.
That’s changing. Business travel is back on the rise, and business jets have been a big part of that. The global private jet market has seen an increase in activity for 20 of the last 24 weeks. WINGX data. Qi states that VistaJet had received three more requests for proposals (RFPs) in the six-month period of 2025 as compared to 2024.
The surge in demand isn’t just driven by business travelers. Private carriers are a great way to reach destinations without commercial flights. According to an aircraft charter specialist Chapman FreebornThe most difficult to reach destinations include Scotland’s HebridesThe French and Italian Islands of Corsica, Ischia and are all the rage this summer. They join perennial favorites such as the Hamptons You can also find out more about the following: Ibiza. Over Memorial Day Weekend, US private jet flights increased. hit an all-time record Comparing the previous year
There’s still room for growth—according to 2021 dataThe majority of US households that can afford private aviation do not. Private aviation bookings are a manual process. Calling brokers, comparing jet cards memberships or purchasing fractional models is often easier than buying a $10,000 business class It is better to buy a ticket than go through the motions and reserve a private charter.
New products and technology are now being developed to help address these pain points. Some start-ups want to be “the Uber of Private Jet Travel,” including KinectairThis summer, Uber launched a new app that offers real-time prices and route search functions without any membership fees. Uber has launched a new app called Uber Go. helicopter booking feature In the meantime, Amalfi Coast.
Commercial and private aviation are increasingly interconnected. Delta Air Lines has become the first airline to connect its international business class customers with private jets. Wheels Up charter flights throughout Europe.
Meanwhile, “semi-private” carriers like JSX, XO. Aero You can also offer yourself scheduled services aboard private aircraft that travelers can book by the seat—a model that’s proven a hit among premium travelers. Tradewind Aviation—which offers both book-by-the-seat scheduled flights and private charters in the US and the Caribbean—says it’s seeing roughly a 33% year-over-year increase in scheduled service bookings across its routes; However, private charters are seeing “less of an increase” this summer compared to last, a Tradewind spokesperson tells Traveler.
As the demand for scheduled flights increases, carriers such as these are expanding their routes. Aero launched its bicoastal service in May. Los Angeles You can also find out more about the following: New York Flight (with Starlink Wi Fi and Erewhon in-flight meals). The company said the new route “was built for business travelers who fly from Los Angeles to New York in the mornings on Mondays, and return to Los Angeles in afternoons on Thursdays”.
Mattson of Wheels Up believes that even more travelers are going to make the switch from business class to a business jet over the next few years. Above all else, the core draw of private aviation—whether used for a corporate or leisure trip—remains a simple one, he says: “You can save a lot of time—and time, ultimately, is money.”
