SmartJets Forecasts Strong Q4 2026 as Pre-Owned Long-Range Business Jet Demand Rises 7% YTD

Business aircraft dealer-broker SmartJets on September 29, 2026 forecast a strong fourth quarter for the business jet market, citing high transaction volumes, large manufacturer backlogs, and sustained demand from ultra-high-net-worth individuals and corporate flight departments. According to AMSTAT data, pre-owned long-range business jet transactions are up 7% year-to-date through the first half of 2026 compared with the same period in 2025.

SmartJets attributed the rise to extended wait times for new aircraft deliveries, which are pushing buyers toward pre-owned alternatives offering immediate availability and price discounts relative to new aircraft. The firm said the combination of those factors is creating scarcity of select models while simultaneously driving up prices. SmartJets President Ben Shirazi said the long-range segment is expected to see the fastest growth within the broader market, adding: "The demand for new, long-range business aircraft is high and backlogs are significant. The result is that many buyers are looking at top-tier pre-owned business aircraft as alternatives." He cited recent transactions involving Bombardier Global aircraft — including a Global 7500 — Gulfstream G550s, and Dassault Falcon jets including an 8X.

Shirazi pointed to the US bonus depreciation provision, which allows businesses to deduct 100% of an aircraft's purchase cost in the year of acquisition, as an additional demand driver heading into the fourth quarter. He noted that as of September 15, 2026, the bonus depreciation incentive also applies to Canadian buyers, adding a further catalyst for year-end transactions. SmartJets said it does not anticipate a reversal of the current trends of decreasing supply and rising prices in the pre-owned long-range segment.

This case illustrates how backlog pressure at the manufacturer level flows downstream into the used-aircraft market: when new-build wait times stretch out, buyers with an immediate mission need shift toward pre-owned inventory, and that shift concentrates on the long-range segment where corporate and ultra-high-net-worth demand is least price-sensitive. The pre-owned market works as a release valve for that backlog, but a limited pool of top-tier aircraft means the same demand that used to spread across new order books now competes for a narrower set of listings, tightening availability and lifting prices for models like the Global 7500, G550 and Falcon 8X.

Tax policy is layering onto that dynamic. Bonus depreciation has long pulled US year-end transactions forward, and its extension to Canadian buyers as of September 15, 2026 widens the pool of buyers with a calendar-year incentive to close deals before Q4 ends. Whether that produces a genuine surge in closings or simply reshuffles the timing of deals already in motion will show up in how AMSTAT's transaction counts for the second half of 2026 compare with the first-half 7% gain SmartJets is citing now.