Charter Costs Up About 20%, Turboprops Step In: The Market Heading Into NBAA-BACE 2026

Costs are up, demand is holding

FlyUSA CEO Barry Shevlin told Aviation Week that charter customers are paying about 20% more for an average trip than a year earlier, as higher fuel and airport charges complicate the outlook. Demand has not cracked: at Sentient Jet, super-midsize jet card sales grew 25% in the first half of 2026 and average jet card purchases rose 12%, with CEO Alan Walsh pointing to business flyers who value consistency and availability.

The longer view is upbeat too. In an Airbus Corporate Jets survey of 35 financiers and brokers across the Middle East, 83% expect more large-jet activity through 2030 (37% a dramatic increase), 80% more light-jet flying and 78% gains for midsize aircraft. 94% said geopolitics had raised government interest in buying or leasing business aircraft, and Airbus said roughly 40% of the region’s fleet is nearing a 15-year replacement cycle.

The turboprop alternative under 1,000 miles

Daher says its TBM is increasingly flown for charter. With fuel costs up, a TBM burning about 60 gallons per hour is becoming “less than half of the price of a light jet”, according to sales VP Michel Adam de Villiers, which makes it attractive for trips of just below 1,000 miles. He puts TBM charter at about $2,000 per hour from many operators. The type cruises at up to 330 KTAS, the latest versions reach 1,730 nm, and Daher counts about 1,000 TBMs and 280 Kodiaks in the U.S.

Operator Little Hawk Logistics shows the access case: its TBMs have carried 6,500 passengers to more than 500 airports, about three in five of them with no scheduled airline service.

Safety and regulation this week

Garmin’s emergency Autoland is now on more than 2,500 aircraft across more than 15 models, six years after first FAA certification in 2020; 2026 approvals for the HondaJet Elite II and Phenom 300EV brought it to twin-engine business jets. The FAA has proposed an airworthiness directive for all 680 U.S.-registered Challenger 300, 350 and 3500 jets, making the AP STAB TRIM FAIL procedure an emergency procedure; comments close on 29 October. And House lawmakers want the FAA’s AI-supported SMART traffic tool paused at Reagan National, Dulles and BWI pending a safety review.

These issues will be on stage at NBAA-BACE, 20–22 October at the Las Vegas Convention Center and Henderson Executive Airport, where FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford opens an expanded Meet the Regulators session on 20 October.

Desk takeaway

With trip costs rising, match the aircraft to the mission: for short regional hops a turboprop can be the efficient choice, and repositioning legs are the other big lever on price. Check live options on our empty-leg board, set empty-leg alerts for your routes and follow the market in Market Intelligence.

Verified data & source

Every statement below comes from a separately cited source carried in NBAA Daily on 14 and 15 October 2026: Aviation Week (Airbus Corporate Jets survey, Sentient Jet and FlyUSA comments; Daher on the TBM and Kodiak), Aerospace Global News (Garmin Autoland), GlobalAir.com (proposed Challenger airworthiness directive) and AVweb (FAA SMART), plus NBAA’s own 15 October press release on the NBAA-BACE schedule. Figures are reported exactly as published, including the sources’ own “about” and “roughly” qualifiers; nothing is blended or derived.

Key verified statements (Aviation Week, Aerospace Global News, GlobalAir.com and AVweb (via NBAA Daily, 14–15 October 2026); NBAA press release, 15 October 2026):

• FlyUSA CEO Barry Shevlin estimated that charter customers are paying about 20% more for an average trip than a year earlier, as higher fuel and airport charges complicate the demand outlook (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• Sentient Jet's sales of super-midsize jet cards grew 25% in the first half of 2026, while average jet card purchases increased 12%, CEO Alan Walsh told Aviation Week (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• In an Airbus Corporate Jets survey of 35 aircraft financiers and brokers across the Middle East, 83% expected increased large business jet activity through 2030, including 37% who expect a dramatic increase (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• In the same Airbus Corporate Jets survey, 80% of respondents anticipated higher light jet activity and 78% foresaw gains for midsize aircraft through 2030 (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• 94% of respondents to the Airbus Corporate Jets Middle East survey said geopolitical developments had increased government interest in buying or leasing business aircraft (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• Airbus said roughly 40% of the Middle East business aircraft fleet is nearing a 15-year replacement cycle (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• Daher Aircraft vice president of sales Michel Adam de Villiers said a TBM burning about 60 gallons per hour is becoming less than half the price of a light jet, making it very attractive for small charter flights of just below 1,000 miles (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 14 October 2026).
• According to Daher, the TBM can be chartered from many operators for about $2,000 per hour (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 14 October 2026).
• Daher markets the TBM as the world's fastest single-engine turboprop, with a maximum cruise speed of 330 KTAS; the latest iterations fly to a maximum range of 1,730 nm (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 14 October 2026).
• Daher counts about 1,000 TBMs and 280 Kodiaks operating in the U.S. (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 14 October 2026).
• Charter operator Little Hawk Logistics' TBMs have carried 6,500 passengers and served more than 500 airports around the U.S., with approximately three out of five of those airports having no scheduled airline service, according to Daher (Aviation Week, via NBAA Daily, 14 October 2026).
• More than 2,500 aircraft worldwide are equipped with Garmin's emergency Autoland system, now available on more than 15 aircraft models, six years after the technology was first certified by the FAA in 2020 (Aerospace Global News, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• Garmin Autoland certifications in 2026 included the HondaJet Elite II and the Embraer Phenom 300EV, extending the technology into twin-engine business jets (Aerospace Global News, via NBAA Daily, 15 October 2026).
• The FAA has proposed an airworthiness directive for all 680 U.S.-registered Bombardier BD-100-1A10 aircraft (Challenger 300, 350 and 3500) that would make the AP STAB TRIM FAIL procedure an emergency procedure after reports of pitch upset events; comments are open until 29 October 2026 (GlobalAir.com, via NBAA Daily, 14 October 2026).
• NBAA-BACE 2026 takes place 20–22 October at the Las Vegas Convention Center and Henderson Executive Airport, with FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford opening an expanded Meet the Regulators session on 20 October (NBAA press release, 15 October 2026).
• House lawmakers have urged the FAA to suspend its AI-supported SMART air traffic management tool at Reagan National, Dulles and Baltimore/Washington airports pending a safety review; the system began limited operations on 21 September 2026 (AVweb, via NBAA Daily, 14 October 2026).

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