Aircraft Leasing Market Size & Outlook, 2026-2034

Aircraft Leasing Market Overview

The global aircraft leasing market size is valued at USD 189.1 billion in 2025 and is estimated to reach USD 491.7 billion by 2034, growing at a CAGR of 11.2% during the forecast period. Consistent growth of the market is supported by the rising preference of airlines for asset-light fleet strategies, driven by high aircraft acquisition costs, delivery bottlenecks from OEMs, and the need for financial flexibility. These factors significantly accelerate lease adoption across both commercial and cargo operators, positioning aircraft leasing as a critical enabler of global fleet expansion and operational resilience.

Key Market Trends & Insights

• North America dominated the market with a revenue share of 36.27% in 2025.
• Asia Pacific is anticipated to grow at the fastest CAGR of 12.74% during the forecast period.
• Based on lease type, the Dry Lease segment held the highest market share of 58.42% in 2025.
• By aircraft type, the Narrow Body Aircraft segment is estimated to register the fastest CAGR growth of 12.18%.
• Based on lease duration, the Medium-Term Lease (3–6 Years) segment dominated the market in 2025 with a revenue share of 46.57%.
• By lessee type, the Commercial Passenger Airlines segment led the market with the largest share in 2025 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 11.86% during the forecast period.
• The U.S. dominates the aircraft leasing market, valued at USD 68.37 billion in 2024 and reaching USD 74.95 billion in 2025.

U.S Aircraft Leasing Market Size (USD Million)

Source: Straits Research

Market Revenue Figures

• 2025 Market Size: USD 189.1 billion
• 2034 Projected Market Size: USD 7 billion
• CAGR (2026-2034):11.2%
• Dominating Region: North America
• Fastest Growing Region: Asia Pacific

The global aircraft leasing market encompasses a wide range of lease structures, from dry lease, wet lease (ACMI), and damp leasing arrangements that allow airlines and operators to access aircraft capacity without having to bear the full cost of ownership. These models are applied to serve multiple categories of aircraft, such as narrow-body aircraft, wide-body aircraft, and regional jets, each chosen according to route demands, operation efficiency, and fleet renewal needs. Moreover, leasing agreements are structured for short-term, medium-term, and long-term duration, thereby enabling operators to optimize their fleets for flexibility, seasonality management, and responses to variable market conditions.

Aircraft leasing services are used by a host of diverse lessee groups involving commercial passenger airlines, cargo operators, government and defense agencies, and other aviation stakeholders, all of whom find financial agility and operational scalability through such aircraft asset management models. The aircraft leasing market plays a critical role in supporting global aviation growth, with the ability of airlines to enhance their capacities, expand their networks, and modernize their fleets on adaptable, capital-efficient lease frameworks.

Current Market Trends

Transition from Ownership-Heavy Fleets to Asset-Light Operating Models

The aircraft leasing ecosystem is experiencing a tectonic shift as airlines move away from traditional, ownership-based fleet strategies towards flexible, asset-light models based on dry leasing, wet leasing, and medium-term contractual agreements. Traditionally, airlines were always under tremendous pressure due to high upfront capital outlay, uncertain interest rates, and long aircraft delivery cycles, which inhibited their ability to scale capacity effectively. Today, leasing platforms empower operators to deploy aircraft rapidly, minimize the burden on their balance sheet, and react to volatile demand cycles-especially across the short haul and in emerging markets.

Similarly, digitalized fleet planning tools, enhanced residual value analytics, and real-time operational dashboards have further cemented this transition by offering airlines unparalleled optimization of fleet utilization. Evidence from carriers globally supports the fact that leased aircraft are constituting a substantial share of active fleets, testifying to a structural shift toward flexible asset usage. This is a defining evolution for commercial aviation: the leasing model has become key to airline resilience, liquidity management, and long-term fleet modernization.

Accelerating Demand for Narrow-Body Aircraft Concurrent with Global Network Restructuring

A marked trend in the shape of the market is the growing demand for narrow-body aircraft across lessor portfolios, driven by the restructurings of airline networks toward high-frequency, fuel-efficient, point-to-point operations. Where once long-haul wide-body aircraft were the mainstays of expansion, rising fuel costs, fluctuating international traffic, and evolving passenger preference have recently prompted airlines to focus on single-aisle fleets.

Lessors are reacting by broadening narrow-body portfolios, especially in the medium-term lease length, targeted at LCC and ULCC growth corridors. The latest independent industry analysis reveals that OEM delivery tightness and production delays have increased narrow-body reliance on the leasing channel further. This structural shift points to a long-term evolution in global route strategies, placing narrow-body leasing firmly at the core of airline expansion, network optimization, and sustainable fleet planning.

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Market Driver

Government-Backed Aviation Expansion Programs Boosting Lease Demand

The drivers for aircraft leasing are increasingly large-scale government initiatives focused on expanding national aviation capacity, improving regional connectivity, and renewing their fleets. This can be seen from the announced aviation infrastructure and fleet growth plans in several countries, especially those reliant on leased aircraft to enable operators to grow rapidly without the financial burden of ownership. For example, India's UDAN regional connectivity scheme has driven demand for leased narrow-body and regional jets as airlines expand on underserved routes with limited capital outlay.

Similarly, governments throughout the Middle East and Southeast Asia are modernizing airports, expanding bilateral air service agreements, and liberalizing aviation policies in order to entice foreign lessors to take part in fleet expansion. All this policy-driven momentum has created strong traction for leasing companies as airlines increasingly opt for medium-term and long-term lease contracts to meet aggressive expansion targets. It is this meeting of national aviation strategies with fleet leasing models that has turned into the powerful accelerator of global leasing activity.

Market Restraint

Regulatory Barriers and Cross-Border Compliance Complexities Are Slowing Lease Deployments

One of the key restraints in the aircraft leasing market is that there is increased regulatory complexity with regard to cross-border aircraft movement, registration, repossession rights, and compliance with aviation safety directives. The government authorities in many regions have increased oversight over the import of aircraft, airworthiness certification, and security clearances-creating multi-layered approval processes that may grossly delay lease commencements. Changes in aircraft registration norms, for example, have increased due diligence requirements and made bilateral clearances more rigid, which have, in turn, stretched the turnaround timelines of lessors operating across jurisdictions.

Market Opportunity

Expanding Mid-Life Aircraft Demand Creating New Portfolio Growth Potential

A key emerging opportunity within the aircraft leasing market is the growing demand for mid-life aircraft from airlines looking to expand capacity quickly without waiting for deliveries of new production models. Changing route strategies, shifting passenger traffic trends, and the revival of regional and point-to-point networks in recent years have all increased reliance on mid-life narrow-body and regional jets that are quicker to deploy and can be integrated into fleets with minimal disruption to operations. Leasing companies maintaining well-managed mid-life portfolios are now benefiting from strengthened remarketing prospects and higher utilization across medium-term lease cycles.

This has also prompted operators to pursue flexible lease contracts that allow the expansion of their fleets during peak seasons and periods of network restructuring. With demand for reliable, readily available aircraft continuing to grow, mid-life asset leasing represents a significant growth opportunity for lessors, as it enables them not only to extract value from their existing fleets but also to support the airlines' needs for agile, capacity-driven expansion strategies.

Regional Analysis

North America accounted for 36.27% of the global revenue in 2025, as a consequence of a well-developed aviation ecosystem, mature leasing frameworks, and a highly liquid secondary aircraft market that enables rapid transition and redeployment of leased fleets. Carriers based in North America have also moved to multi-variable leasing strategies that incorporate both mid-term and long-term tenures, enabling fleet planning stabilization while sustaining resiliency in airline operations throughout periods of fluctuating demand. The region is also home to sophisticated financial institutions and well-established aviation asset-management expertise that, together, strengthen leasing activity and accelerate the adoption of flexible fleet models across commercial airlines.

Strong airline consolidation and ever-increasing importance of lease-backed fleet modernization programs strengthen the growth of the U.S. aircraft leasing market. Over the last few years, major carriers have expanded their leasing portfolios with the aim of replacing aging narrow-body aircraft with more efficient ones, ensuring network reliability and proper alignment of capacity. The country's strong aviation infrastructure and extensive maintenance networks contribute to efficient aircraft turnaround and higher utilization rates, thereby sustaining the U.S. position as the dominant market within the global leasing landscape.

Asia Pacific Aircraft Leasing Market Insights

Asia Pacific is set to expand at a CAGR of 12.74% from 2026 to 2034. This growth is underpinned by surging passenger demand and expanding low-cost carriers in this region. Accelerated recovery takes place for intra-regional travel routes. Countries in Southeast Asia and the broader Asia Pacific corridor are increasing airport infrastructure and airline fleets at phenomenal rates, which pressures operators to quickly secure aircraft through reliance on dry and damp leasing structures. The volume demand for narrow-body aircraft serving dense short-haul networks further boosts lease demand; hence, it places Asia Pacific as a pivotal driver for future market growth.

Various factors have caused rapid growth in the aircraft leasing landscape of India. It begins with the regional connectivity programs and domestic carriers' aggressive growth plans, which involve medium-term narrow-body leases for the addition of frequencies on existing routes. Several leasing platforms established within international financial centers in India also facilitate access to structured leasing solutions that make it easier for airlines to secure capacity during peak seasons. The initiatives for increased private-sector aviation investments, combined with the rising demand for passenger and cargo aircraft, make India emerge as an influential growth hub within the Asia Pacific aircraft leasing sector.

Source: Straits Research

Europe Aircraft Leasing Market Insights

The European aircraft leasing market is recording steady growth, backed by mature aviation networks of the region, rapid adoption of flexible fleet strategies, and strong emphasis on sustainable fleet renewal. Most airlines in Western and Central Europe already use aircraft leasing as a way to replace aging aircraft and/or to increase their fleets for environmental efficiency. Moreover, the well-developed aviation finance ecosystem of the region, coupled with active remarketing channels, increases fleet mobility and speeds up the pace of lease placements across regional and long-haul carriers alike.

This growth in the German market is facilitated by the expanding fleet modernization programs across major carriers and charter operators. Many airlines have strengthened their reliance on medium-term narrow-body leases to maintain operational continuity during fluctuating travel demand. German engineering strengths, combined with an extensive maintenance infrastructure, further facilitate efficient turnaround of leased aircraft, making it a key driver of the overall leasing activity in Europe and a preferred destination for repositioning assets in the region.

Latin America Market Insights

The restructuring of Latin American airline networks fuels demand for efficient narrow-body aircraft and is increasingly dependent on dry leasing to manage volatility. More regional operators are expanding service coverage with leased aircraft in a bid to improve route reliability and rebuild capacity following disruptions in their respective markets. With new low-cost entrants coming into the fray within the region, this further accelerates demand for leased single-aisle aircraft and is cementing the leasing ecosystem across Latin America.

The aircraft leasing market in Brazil continues to develop, with domestic airlines turning to increasingly flexible leasing structures to match capacity with seasonal travel peaks and ongoing infrastructure improvements across major airports. Operators increasingly look toward medium- and long-term leases in the pursuit of more fuel-efficient fleets, while charter and regional carriers make use of damp leasing to serve remote or underserved markets. An increased focus on aircraft transition, maintenance, and redelivery services cements Brazil's position as a Latin American focal point for leasing.

Middle East and Africa Market Insights

Notable growth has been witnessed in aircraft leasing within the Middle East and Africa, with carriers expanding their international routes and diversifying fleet strategies to manage ever-growing passenger demand. Wet and damp leasing arrangements are very common among airlines in this region to cope with operational stability during peak travel seasons and major events. The increasing collaborations between regional airlines and lessors from different parts of the world fast-track the renewal of fleets and improve narrow-body and wide-body aircraft availability across key aviation hubs.

The market of Kenya is developing, with regional and domestic airlines expanding their fleets through flexible lease contracts in order to strengthen intra-African connectivity. Operators are increasingly moving toward medium-term leases to upgrade to more fuel-efficient aircraft and extend service coverage across East Africa. Kenya's growing aviation training and maintenance capacity and the emergence of new commercial operators is bolstering increased leasing activity and places the country in a strong position to be an influential growth point within the Middle East and Africa aircraft leasing sector.

Lease Type Insights

In 2025, the Dry Lease segment held the market share with 58.42% due to strong moves from airlines towards asset-light fleet strategies, wherein dry leasing allows operators access to aircraft without operational responsibilities tied to crew, maintenance, or insurance.

The Wet Lease (ACMI) segment is likely to witness the fastest growth, at a CAGR of about 12.34%, during the forecast period. The rapid growth of the segment arises out of the fact that ACMI arrangements are being increasingly used to address demand spikes linked to peak travel seasons, pilot shortages, and abrupt aircraft groundings or delays in aircraft delivery.

By Lease Type Market Share (%), 2025

Source: Straits Research

Aircraft Type Insights

The Wide Body Aircraft segment comprised a revenue share of 33.74% in 2025, thus making a strong contribution to the aircraft leasing market. Continuous long-haul demand from major full-service carriers and global hub operators, reliant on wide-body fleets to provide intercontinental connectivity, undergirds its dominance.

The narrow body aircraft segment is expected to grow at the highest CAGR of around 12.18% during the forecast period. Rapid growth of low-cost carriers, increasing adoption of point-to-point route networks, and strong demand for fuel-efficient single-aisle jets drive the growth.

Lease Duration Insights

The segment of a medium-term lease (3–6 Years) dominated the market in 2025, with a revenue share of 46.57%. Such market leadership is supported by airlines increasingly favoring medium-term contracts that offer an optimal balance between operational flexibility and long-term capacity planning.

The segment of Long-Term Lease (>6 Years) is set to see the fastest growth during the forecast period. This is propelled by a rise in the adoption of long-term fleet strategies connected with sustainability commitments, next-generation aircraft acquisitions, and multi-year operational planning.

Lessee Type Insights

The Commercial Passenger Airlines segment held the largest market share in 2025 and is projected to grow during the forecast period at a CAGR of 11.86%. The fast growth of international air travel networks, higher usage of asset-light fleet strategies, and growing preference for leased narrow-body aircraft to support high-frequency regional and international route flying give rise to this segment. As airlines emphasize flexibility within their fleet planning and conserve precious capital amidst uncertain travel demand, commercial carriers are increasingly relying on medium- and long-term leases that enable scalable and cost-efficient operations.

Competitive Landscape

The global aircraft leasing market follows a moderately consolidated market structure, with large-scale lessors along with specialized leasing firms across diverse segments of aircraft. The large players hold the majority of shares by maintaining huge portfolio fleets, strong airline relationships, and leasing networks globally. Usually, leading firms hold bigger asset bases and are more diversified in their financial structures. This enables them to drive lease pricing, aircraft availability, and market dynamics.

The major market players are AerCap Holdings, SMBC Aviation Capital, Avolon, and others. Top companies in the industry have been fairly active in enhancing their market position through portfolio expansion, strategic acquisition, and multi-year deals with major airlines around the world. Leading companies continue to influence the competitive landscape and solidify their positions as major players in the global aircraft leasing market by focusing on fleet modernization, sale-and-leaseback partnerships, and multi-year leasing contracts.

Jackson Square Aviation: An Emerging Market Player

Recent years have seen the U.S.-based aircraft leasing firm Jackson Square Aviation appear as a more and more significant new entrant to the global aircraft leasing market.

• In March 2025, the company placed its first direct order with Airbus for 50 A320neo family aircraft, marking an aggressive entry into large-scale narrow-body leasing.

Thus, Jackson Square Aviation stands out as a significant new entrant in the global Aircraft Leasing Market of 2025 due to its large-scale fleet acquisition strategy and narrow-body aircraft focus.

List of key players in Aircraft Leasing Market

1. AerCap Holdings
2. SMBC Aviation Capital
3. Avolon
4. Air Lease Corporation (ALC)
5. BOC Aviation
6. DAE Capital
7. CDB Aviation
8. Aviation Capital Group (ACG)
9. BBAM
10. Aircastle
11. Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC)
12. ICBC Leasing
13. Jackson Square Aviation
14. Castlelake Aviation
15. Azorra
16. Goshawk Aviation
17. Macquarie AirFinance
18. Airborne Capital
19. Willis Lease
20. Calspan
21. Others

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Strategic Initiatives

• November 2025: Avolon agreed to lease 13 Airbus aircraft from its orderbook 9 A330neos and 4 A320neo-family jets to Etihad Airways. This large-scale deal underscores Avolon’s strategy to deploy both wide-body and narrow-body jets to premium and long-haul carriers.
• September 2025: Macquarie AirFinance placed a direct order for 30 Boeing 737-8 MAX aircraft, increasing its 737 MAX order book to 70 jets underscoring its commitment to fuel-efficient narrow-body leasing amid rising global passenger demand and sustainability pressures.
• July 2025: SMBC Aviation Capital signed lease agreements with AJet Hava Taşimacılığı (subsidiary of Turkish Airlines) for 5 Airbus A320neo aircraft, scheduled for delivery between Q4 2025 and Q2 2026, expanding AJet’s fleet and reinforcing SMBC’s narrow-body portfolio.
• April 2025: Aviation Capital Group (ACG) signed a definitive agreement to acquire 20 aircraft from Avolon a portfolio comprising 16 narrow-body and 4 wide-body “new-technology” jets, with an average fleet age of approximately 4.1 years and an average remaining lease term of approximately 8.4 years.