Sandhills Global: Used Jet and Turboprop Inventory Rises Month Over Month in September but Stays Below Year-Ago Levels
Why It MattersA thin year-over-year supply base alongside firming jet asking prices points to a seller-favoured pre-owned jet market that is stabilising at lower volumes rather than rebuilding stock.
What happened
Sandhills Global's new aviation market reports show that inventory of pre-owned jets and turboprop aircraft rose month over month in September but stayed below year-ago levels. The reports cover used jets, turboprops, single-engine piston aircraft and Robinson piston helicopters listed on Controller.com and other Sandhills platforms.
Global used jet inventory rose 5.07% month over month and fell 23.58% year over year, with the trend described as sideways. Super mid jets recorded the largest monthly inventory change, up 10%, while large jets recorded the largest year-over-year change, down 39.8%. Used jet asking prices increased 2.02% month over month and 0.71% year over year and are trending up. Super mid jets also led on asking values, up 5.29% on the month and 4.2% on the year.
Global used turboprop inventory rose 3.46% month over month and was 11.95% lower year over year, trending sideways. Asking values moved 0.22% higher on the month and 0.57% higher on the year, also trending sideways.
In the U.S. and Canada, used single-engine piston inventory was flat month over month and down 12.24% year over year, and is trending up. Asking values fell 0.74% month over month and 2.36% year over year and are trending down. Global used Robinson piston helicopter inventory rose 3.53% month over month and fell 2.22% year over year, trending sideways; asking values rose 2.45% on the month, fell 3.24% on the year and are trending down.
Controller Manager Terrin Mohl said jet inventory on Sandhills sites increased this month and several jets sold quickly even though overall inventory remains lower than last year. He added that piston aircraft are starting to move after a few slower months, suggesting the market is stabilizing rather than accelerating.
Industry impact & what to watch
The combination of a month-over-month inventory gain and a sizeable year-over-year deficit describes a pre-owned market that is refilling slowly from a tight base. In used business jets, a supply shortfall of this size generally gives sellers pricing support, and that is consistent with jet asking values trending up while the larger supply gap sits in the large jet segment. When listings turn over quickly, as Mohl described, asking prices tend to hold even without much new stock reaching the market.
The segments diverge in a way that matters for how each part of the market behaves. Jets and super mid jets show firming asking values, turboprops are flat on both inventory and pricing trend, and piston aircraft and Robinson helicopters show asking values drifting lower year over year despite improving movement. Sellers in the lighter categories are therefore competing on price, while jet sellers are not yet being forced to.
The next monthly reports will show whether the September inventory gain extends or reverses. Super mid jets, where both the largest monthly inventory increase and the largest asking-price gain appeared, are the segment where that interaction will be easiest to read.
