Global business aviation flight activity rose 5.6% year over year (YOY) last month, according to Argus Analytics’ latest TraqPak data. North American activity remained strong across all operational categories, climbing 4.3% YOY, while Europe’s activity slipped 1.2%, its first decline in 14 months.

North America’s gains last month were broad-based. Fractional operators led the way, up 10% from July 2025, followed by Part 135 activity (+4.8%) and Part 91 (+1.4%). By aircraft category, turboprops posted the largest YOY increase at 4.7%, followed by light jets (+4.2%), midsize jets (+4.1%), and large-cabin jets (+3.7%).

In Europe, large-cabin jets drove most of the loss, falling 6.5% YOY, while small-cabin jets slipped 0.9%. Midsize jets and turboprops posted YOY gains of 1.8% and 3.0%, respectively.

Meanwhile, business aircraft flying soared by 18.5% in the rest of the world, with turboprop activity climbing 23.9%, followed by light jets (+16.3%), midsize jets (+14.3%), and large-cabin jets (+11%).

TraqPak analysts project North American activity to grow 3.5% YOY this month, with European activity expected to rise 0.6%.

Madrid-based United Aviation Services, part of the Stellair Group, has completed the acquisition of Spanish FBO and handling operator Mallorcair. According to United Aviation, this brings “one of Europe’s most renowned executive aviation handling stations and destinations into the group.”

While Mallorcair will continue to operate under its own brand and management team, United Aviation said both parties will benefit from “access to the group’s resources…while preserving the local expertise and entrepreneurial culture” of the FBO. Founded in 1991, Mallorcair has been family-owned until United’s acquisition.

According to United Aviation, the addition of the Palma de Mallorca facility will enhance its ability to support customers across Spain. This will bolster its presence in the Balearic Islands, where the Stellair Group is already represented in Menorca and Ibiza through its subsidiary Ibizair. United Aviation now has ground-handling operations at 22 airports across Spain.

José Eduardo Brandão, CEO of Brazil-based business aircraft sales and service provider Synerjet, spoke with AIN last week at LABACE 2026 about the South American business aviation market. Synerjet has been Pilatus’ exclusive representative in Brazil since 2012, expanding its territory to cover the rest of Central and South America.

Brandão laid out the challenges Synerjet is facing, given production capacity limits at aircraft manufacturers. “With the expectation of an increase [in the Pilatus fleet in the region], we increased our service center capacity to meet demand,” he said. “But the factory can’t meet demand. So we are diversifying as far as we can, including into preowned aircraft sales. That serves to create client loyalty until [new-production] aircraft arrive.”

According to Brandão, the region is not a monolith and requires a country-by-country approach. “We work in other Latin American countries, and there are different patterns,” he said, describing the need to understand and adapt to different cultures. Even in Brazil, despite challenges such as U.S. trade retaliation and Chinese fluctuations, the market has continued climbing, he noted.

“Argentina is showing its claws. Paraguay is a good client for us. Bolivia for the first time is awakening. Guatemala is strong. Chile is discreet but constant.” Brandão added that Latin America is a good market “if you’re willing to understand it and the various regimes.”

TLC Aviation subsidiary Privaira Private Aviation is now becoming part of the TLC Jet brand, unifying the companies’ capabilities in what TLC states is “one name for private jet charter, aircraft management, and aviation support services.”

This integration process began with the December acquisition of Boca Raton, Florida-based Privaira by TLC Aviation. “As part of the transition, Privaira’s on-demand charter services and jet inventory will begin operating under the TLC Jet brand,” it confirmed. TLC Aviation CEO Amanda Fisher said that Privaira’s expertise in aircraft management, as well as its FAA Part 135 charter and brokerage services, represent a “meaningful new capability to the TLC Jet brand.”

Over the coming months, Privaira’s website, communications, and other elements will transition to TLC Jet branding. Customers booking qualifying charter travel through TLC Jet will also be eligible to earn miles and loyalty points through the company’s American Airlines AAdvantage program.

Despite the brand’s evolution, TLC asserted that the operational foundation remains unchanged. Flight operations will continue to be conducted by the same FAA Part 135-certified carrier, Sky One Holdings, which TLC believes will ensure continuity for existing customers.

Even before the Iran war started, the Middle East accounted for 40% of security support requests fielded by MedAire, according to data recently released by the operational support group. Last year, client trips to Africa and South Asia accounted for a further 25% and 20%, respectively, of security requests, based on access to MedAire’s security teams and the use of its on-demand intelligence portal.

Data also showed an 18.6% increase in requests for the passenger fit-to-fly medical assessment service that the company offers, which now account for almost half of all cases handled. There was an 18.3% increase in musculoskeletal issues associated with the requests, with gastrointestinal (21.9%) and neurological (12.7%) cases also prevalent.

However, MedAire reported that dermatological issues were the fastest-growing area of concern for the aircraft operators it supports. So the company has created a specific support category for cosmetic surgery to take account of the rising number of cases, especially due to growing demand for medical tourism.

During 2025, 1.68% of flights supported by MedAire resulted in a diversion for medical reasons, which the company said cost operators between $15,000 and $200,000 per incident. For cardiovascular episodes, the diversion rate was 6.8%. MedAire’s remote medical experts help air crew determine whether a diversion is required.

A ground vehicle operated by commercial airline handling group Dnata collided with a Beechjet 400A jet at Milan Linate Airport (LIML) in Italy yesterday. The aircraft is operated by Naples, Italy-based charter company Slam Air.

A spokesperson for Dubai-based Dnata confirmed that one of its airside vehicles had been involved in the incident, which happened at around 11:20 a.m. local time. “There were no passengers on board the aircraft at the time of the incident, and no injuries were reported,” the company said in a statement. “Safety is our highest priority across our global operations. We are working with the affected airline and the relevant authorities to establish the circumstances of the incident.”

According to several sources among FBOs based at Linate, speaking with AIN on condition of anonymity, the handbrake had not been applied to the vehicle. Video footage posted on social media shows a Fiat Panda car moving quickly towards the taxiing jet and then colliding with its nose. Firefighters, police, and medical staff responded to the incident, which appears to have caused significant damage to the aircraft's nose.

According to airport officials, two arriving flights had to be diverted to other Milan-area airports due to the incident, but operations returned to normal within around 30 minutes. Nine executive aviation handling service providers offer support to business aircraft operators at Linate.

ACI Jet has promoted Aaron Colt to FBO safety manager, a newly created position overseeing safety practices across the company’s fixed-base operations network. The promotion places him under the executive team and FBOs and facilities v-p Andrew Robillard.

Colt will work to advance the company’s FBO safety quality management system (SQMS) and standardize it across all ACI Jet locations. His first assignments include building an audit toolkit to be tested at the headquarters in San Luis Obispo, California, and conducting gap analyses of existing safety manuals and related materials.

Regulatory compliance will also be part of Colt’s role; he is now ACI Jet’s lead subject matter expert. He will audit the company’s FBOs for conformity with FAA, IS-BAH, ATA, OSHA, EPA, and NFPA standards. Robillard credited him with helping implement IS-BAH Stage 2 registration and developing the company's current training systems.

Colt started on the ramp, a background that ACI Jet said informs his view of how safety policy plays out across FBOs of different tiers. He previously served as aircraft ground support supervisor at the group’s John Wayne Airport facility in Orange County, California.

“My goal is to bridge the gap between executive-level policy and the daily operations on each FBO ramp,” Colt said. “By refining our SQMS and optimizing our reporting systems, we are building a safety framework that is fully scalable.”