The 10 Busiest FBOs in the United States (2025 Data)

At 6 AM, Teterboro Airport's ramp is already buzzing with activity. By noon, this New Jersey FBO will have handled more aircraft movements than most airports see in a week. This is the high-pressure world of America's busiest FBOs, where "we're out of hangar space" has become a daily reality.

If you're managing one of these high-traffic facilities, you understand the challenge: juggling 500 daily operations while managing multimillion-dollar aircraft isn't just difficult—it's becoming unsustainable. What industry reports don't reveal is that the issue extends beyond space. It's about the 4 AM maintenance window that conflicts with the 5 AM departure slot, the crew rest requirements that force last-minute aircraft shuffles, and the insurance liability when a G650 clips a King Air during a rushed repositioning move.

Nearly 60% of FBOs reported flat or declining fuel sales in 2024, despite record traffic at top locations. The culprit? Capacity constraints that turn away business every single day—but the real constraint isn't just square footage, it's operational complexity.

Let's dive into which FBOs are handling the most heat and how they're managing (or struggling with) the volume.

The Top 5 Busiest FBOs

1. Teterboro Airport (KTEB) - Leading by Volume

The Numbers: 74,832 private jet departures in 2024. That's approximately 500 takeoffs and landings per day, making it the busiest private jet airport in America by a landslide.

The Players: Jet Aviation, Signature Aviation, Atlantic Aviation, and Meridian compete intensely for every square foot of ramp space. Located just 12 miles from Manhattan, these FBOs are the gateway to Wall Street, and it shows in their traffic patterns.

A typical Tuesday morning at Teterboro - where finding an open parking spot is like winning the lottery

2. Van Nuys Airport (KVNY) - West Coast Powerhouse

The Numbers: Over 232,000 aircraft operations annually, with 63,000+ private jet movements. Fun fact: the Van Nuys to Teterboro route logged 747 flights last year—basically a private jet shuttle service.

The Players: Clay Lacy Aviation, Castle & Cooke Aviation, Signature Flight Support, and Jet Aviation manage this Los Angeles gateway. If you're flying private in LA, you're probably touching down here.

3. Palm Beach International (KPBI) - Florida's Golden Child

The Numbers: Averaging 80,000 annual private flights, KPBI has become the Southeast's business aviation hub.

The Players: Atlantic Aviation, Signature Aviation, and Jet Aviation compete for the steady stream of Northeast snowbirds and international traffic heading to South Florida.

4. Dallas Love Field (KDAL) - Everything's Bigger in Texas

The Numbers: An estimated 73,000 private flights in 2023, serving the Dallas business community with true Texas-sized operations.

5. Westchester County Airport (KHPN) - NYC's Other Airport

The Numbers: While specific traffic data is closely guarded, Million Air Westchester was recognized as the second-best FBO in the U.S. in 2024's AIN survey, handling overflow from Teterboro and serving Connecticut's gold coast.

What Makes These FBOs Magnets for Traffic?

Location, location, location—but that's just the start. The busiest FBOs share several key characteristics:

• Metropolitan proximity: All top 5 are within 30 minutes of major business centers
• Infrastructure investment: Pentastar Aviation (ranked #1 for service) boasts 155,000 sq ft of hangar space
• 24/7 operations: When Wall Street calls at 4 AM, these FBOs answer
• Customs facilities: International clearance capabilities are table stakes

A full hangar is good for business—until you have to turn away a G650 because there's nowhere to put it

The Capacity Challenge

The reality of operating a top-tier FBO is that success can create its own limitations. Signature Aviation and Atlantic Aviation, despite operating the largest FBO networks in the country (200+ and 67 locations respectively), still face daily capacity crunches at their flagship locations.

The data reveals the scope:

• Some flagship FBOs pump over 4 million gallons of fuel annually
• Average hangar utilization at busy FBOs exceeds 95%
• Transient parking overflow forces operators to shuffle aircraft multiple times daily
• Lost revenue from turned-away aircraft is rarely tracked but universally acknowledged

What those numbers don't capture: Galaxy FBO at Addison Airport (110,000 sq ft of hangar space) and Henriksen Jet Center at Houston Executive (179,000 sq ft) have invested heavily in facilities, yet both report regular capacity constraints during peak seasons.

The real operational challenge isn't just the 95% utilization—it's that demand concentrates into specific time windows. Monday mornings and Friday afternoons create 150% demand spikes, while Tuesday and Wednesday midday utilization drops to 70%. You can't serve fractional aircraft with maintenance conflicts, crew duty time limitations, and customer schedule changes all hitting simultaneously.

The Hidden Operational Costs:

• Overtime labor costs during peak periods can increase payroll by 40%
• Insurance premiums rise 15-25% annually due to increased aircraft movement density
• Regulatory compliance costs for Part 139 airports average $125,000 annually for larger FBOs
• Emergency repositioning moves cost $500-2,000 per aircraft in fuel and labor

The Path Forward: Optimize or Stagnate

The busiest FBOs in America aren't just competing on fuel prices and coffee quality anymore. They're in an arms race for efficiency. When you're handling 500 operations a day like Teterboro, or managing 52 turbine aircraft like Henriksen, manual hangar management isn't just inefficient—it's business suicide.

Smart FBOs are implementing these solutions:

Phase 1: Operational Intelligence (Cost: $50,000-150,000)

• Real-time aircraft tracking with maintenance scheduling integration
• Crew duty time monitoring to prevent last-minute conflicts
• Predictive analytics for seasonal demand patterns
• Implementation timeline: 3-6 months

Phase 2: Automated Planning (Cost: $200,000-500,000)

• Dynamic hangar assignment based on aircraft dimensions and departure times
• Automated conflict resolution for maintenance windows
• Integration with fuel scheduling and ground handling systems
• Implementation timeline: 6-12 months

Phase 3: Advanced Optimization (Cost: $300,000-800,000)

• Machine learning algorithms for demand forecasting
• Automated pricing models for peak/off-peak periods
• Integration with weather and air traffic control systems
• Implementation timeline: 12-18 months

Modern hangar optimization software can increase capacity by 20-30% without adding a single square foot

The mathematics: If Teterboro's FBOs could increase hangar efficiency by 20% during peak periods (Monday AM, Friday PM), that's room for 40 additional operations weekly during high-demand windows. At an average fuel sale of 300 gallons per operation and seasonal pricing of $6-8 per gallon, we're talking $72,000-96,000 in additional weekly revenue during peak seasons (December-March, July-August).

However, that 20% efficiency gain requires addressing the real bottlenecks—maintenance scheduling conflicts, crew rest requirements, and the regulatory constraints that most solutions ignore.

Ready to Join the Big Leagues?

Whether you're managing one of America's busiest FBOs or aspiring to join their ranks, the capacity challenge isn't going away. But neither is the opportunity. The FBOs that master the art of hangar Tetris while maintaining service excellence will own the next decade of business aviation.

Before you invest in any capacity solution, ask these questions:

1. Can it handle regulatory constraints? FAA Part 139 requirements, insurance liability minimums, and environmental compliance aren't optional.

2. Does it account for real operational complexities? Maintenance scheduling, crew duty times, and customer service requirements during peak periods.

3. What's the true implementation cost? Factor in staff training, system integration, and the inevitable 6-month adjustment period.

4. Can you measure the ROI? Track turned-away aircraft, overtime costs, and customer satisfaction metrics—not just fuel gallons.

The busiest FBOs didn't achieve their status by accident. They invested in both infrastructure and operational intelligence. But they also learned that technology without operational expertise is just expensive software.

Want to see how the busiest FBOs are maximizing their hangar capacity? Check out our ROI calculator to see what a realistic capacity increase could mean for your bottom line—factoring in peak/off-peak variations, seasonal demand, and actual operational constraints. Because in the FBO business, every square foot counts—especially when you're turning away million-dollar aircraft.