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FAA registry · updated October 5, 2026

Average age of US business jets and turboprops

The median US business jet is 18 years old and the average (mean) is 18.1 years. Turboprops are older: median 22, mean 24.8.

  • Median business jet18 yearsmean 18.1 years
  • Median turboprop22 yearsmean 24.8 years
  • Jets 5 years old or less18%2,823 aircraft
  • Jets over 30 years old15%2,319 aircraft
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AGE BANDS

Half of US business jets were built in 2008 or earlier

15,775 business jets and 7,828 turboprops have a year of manufacture on file. The largest group of jets is 11 to 20 years old. Turboprops have a long tail: 1,929 are over 40, most of them twins such as early King Airs.

How old the US business fleet is Airframe age from the year of manufacture on file. Median: 18 years for business jets, 22 for turboprops.
  • 5 or under years 3,899
  • 6 to 10 years 3,103
  • 11 to 20 years 6,534
  • 21 to 30 years 4,969
  • 31 to 40 years 2,048
  • Over 40 years 3,050

3,028 registrations have no year of manufacture on file and are left out.

Source: FAA Releasable Aircraft Database, file of October 5, 2026. Counted by Radar.

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Title
How old the US business fleet is
Data as of
October 5, 2026
URL
https://www.useradar.com/research/data/average-age-of-business-jets#age

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Radar (2026). "How old the US business fleet is." In Average age of US business jets and turboprops. FAA registry data as of October 5, 2026. https://www.useradar.com/research/data/average-age-of-business-jets#age
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US business jets and turboprops by airframe age, FAA file of October 5, 2026
AgeBusiness jetsTurbopropsShare of jets
5 or under years2,8231,07618%
6 to 10 years2,24785614%
11 to 20 years4,8191,71531%
21 to 30 years3,5671,40223%
31 to 40 years1,1988508%
Over 40 years1,1211,9297%
Year not on file1,7821,246

BY CLASS

Very light jets are the youngest, at a median of 8 years

Age follows production. Classes still selling well, such as very light and ultra-long-range jets, are young. Classes where the bestsellers went out of production, such as large-cabin jets, are older.

Median age of US business aircraft by class Median airframe age in years by class, from the year of manufacture on file. All business jets: 18. All turboprops: 22.
  • Very light jets1,399 aircraft, mean 9.8 years 8 years
  • Light jets4,856 aircraft, mean 21.2 years 20 years
  • Midsize jets3,241 aircraft, mean 20.9 years 20 years
  • Super-midsize jets2,054 aircraft, mean 14.5 years 12 years
  • Large-cabin jets2,254 aircraft, mean 22.3 years 21.5 years
  • Ultra-long-range jets1,971 aircraft, mean 10.8 years 10 years
  • Single-engine turboprops4,116 aircraft, mean 15.2 years 14 years
  • Twin turboprops3,712 aircraft, mean 35.5 years 41 years

Source: FAA Releasable Aircraft Database, file of October 5, 2026. Counted by Radar.

Cite this
Title
Median age of US business aircraft by class
Data as of
October 5, 2026
URL
https://www.useradar.com/research/data/average-age-of-business-jets#age-class

Suggested citation

Radar (2026). "Median age of US business aircraft by class." In Average age of US business jets and turboprops. FAA registry data as of October 5, 2026. https://www.useradar.com/research/data/average-age-of-business-jets#age-class
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Airframe age by class, FAA file of October 5, 2026. Download this table (CSV)
ClassAircraftMedian ageMean age5 or under6 to 1011 to 2021 to 3031 to 40Over 40
Very light jets1,39989.8512246636500
Light jets4,8562021.27456891,1041,125543650
Midsize jets3,2412020.93653521,000970247307
Super-midsize jets2,0541214.54614066384314969
Large-cabin jets2,25421.522.39516380174135995
Ultra-long-range jets1,9711010.864539164029500
Single-engine turboprops4,1161415.29346891,23388336314
Twin turboprops3,7124135.51421674825194871,915

Youngest large fleets

Families with 150 or more aircraft, by median build year.

Oldest large fleets

Still on the register in numbers decades after delivery.

Every family’s median build year is in the model ranking.

QUESTIONS

Business jet age questions

What is the average age of a private jet?

The median US-registered business jet was built 18 years ago and the mean age is 18.1 years (FAA file of October 5, 2026). Very light jets are the youngest class, median 8 years; large-cabin jets the oldest jets, median 21.5.

How long do private jets last?

Decades. 2,319 business jets on the US register, 15% of those with a build year on file, are more than 30 years old. Inspections and the cost of keeping an older type flying usually decide when a jet retires, not a fixed age limit.

METHOD

How this is counted

  • Age. The FAA file’s year (2026) minus the year of manufacture on the registration. A jet built in 2025 counts as one year old for the whole of 2026.
  • Missing years. 3,028 registrations have no year of manufacture on file and are left out of the medians and bands.
  • Median and mean. The median is the middle aircraft; the mean is pulled up by the long tail of old turboprops and early jets.

Source: FAA Releasable Aircraft Database, file of October 5, 2026, recounted with each site update. Aggregates and company names only: no N-number, serial number or person’s name. Counts of individually owned or co-owned aircraft under five are shown as “<5”. The full rules are in the ownership report’s method and on the open data page.