Bombardier Learjet 31: how 64 jets are really flown
The busiest 5% made more than 31 flights a month and the quietest 5% fewer than 4: over ten times as many, on the same type.
At the harder end, one Learjet 31 in twenty sees a freeze and a thaw on 29% or more of its nights. At the easier end, most see almost none.
The hardest-worked 5% log ≈421 h a year or more; the easiest-used, ≈31 h or less. The middle aircraft sits at ≈103 h.
The harder end, one aircraft in twenty, is at 3,117 ft or more; the easier end at 349 ft or less.
Fatigue
What each landing and pressurization cycle costs the structure: landings per hour and short hops.
The middle Learjet 31 flies 1.1 hours for every landing. One in twenty lands every 0.7 hours or sooner, the most cycles for its time.
Middle half 0.9–1.3 : 1Harder end: 5% at 0.7 : 1 or lessEasier end: 5% at 1.6 : 1 or more
Middle half 35–69%Harder end: 5% at 80% or moreEasier end: 5% at 19% or less
Middle half 205–410 nmLowest 5%: 124 nm or lessHighest 5%: 601 nm or more
Context, not graded: the tint marks the harder and easier end of the fleet.
Spread of trip lengths
All 64 Learjet 31sThe data behind it
Every measure for the 64 North American Learjet 31s, 1 Aug 2025 – 31 Jul 2026.| Measure | Fleet median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|
| Hours per landing Each aircraft’s average flight hours per landing | 1.1 : 1 | 0.9–1.3 : 1 |
| Short hops Share of legs under 300 nm | 53% | 35–69% |
| Leg length Median leg | 266 nm | 205–410 nm |
Corrosion
What the air around it does overnight: salt, damp and freeze–thaw.
The middle Learjet 31 spends 0% of its nights within 2 km of the coast. One in twenty spends 8% or more of them there.
Middle half 0–2%Harder end: 5% at 8% or moreEasier end: 5% at -0%
Middle half 6.1–9.4 hHarder end: 5% at 12.5 h or moreEasier end: 5% at 4.8 h or less
Middle half 1–18%Harder end: 5% at 29% or moreEasier end: 5% at -0%
Context, not graded: the tint marks the harder and easier end of the fleet.
Salt air across the fleet
40 Learjet 31sThe data behind it
Every measure for the 40 of the 64 North American Learjet 31s with enough nights at known fields, 1 Aug 2025 – 31 Jul 2026 (4 on their record since 1 Jan 2025: too few in the 12 months).| Measure | Fleet median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|
| Salt air Nights within 2 km of the coast | 0% | 0–2% |
| Near the coast Nights within 10 km of the coast | 5% | 1–12% |
| Damp air Hours a day at 80% humidity or more, above freezing | 7.2 h | 6.1–9.4 h |
| Freeze–thaw Nights that froze and thawed within the day | 6% | 1–18% |
| Moisture in the air Average absolute humidity overnight | 9.0 g/m³ | 7.6–10.8 g/m³ |
Engines and brakes
What departures ask of engines, brakes and tires: heat and height, and runway length.
The middle Learjet 31 leaves from a short runway on 3% of its departures. One in twenty does on 8% or more.
Middle half 0–5%Harder end: 5% at 8% or moreEasier end: 5% at -0%
Middle half 0–9%Harder end: 5% at 27% or moreEasier end: 5% at -0%
Middle half 1,049–2,074 ftHarder end: 5% at 3,117 ft or moreEasier end: 5% at 349 ft or less
Context, not graded: the tint marks the harder and easier end of the fleet.
Runway margin at departure
6,119 departuresThe data behind it
Every measure for the 64 North American Learjet 31s, 1 Aug 2025 – 31 Jul 2026 (1 on their record since 1 Jan 2025: too few departures in the 12 months).| Measure | Fleet median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|
| Short runways Departures where the longest runway was under 1.25× the takeoff distance | 3% | 0–5% |
| Hot, high takeoffs Departures at 5,000 ft density altitude or more | 2% | 0–9% |
| Density altitude Typical density altitude at takeoff | 1,597 ft | 1,049–2,074 ft |
Utilization
How steadily the fleet is used: flights, flying days and estimated hours.
The middle Learjet 31 made 10 flights a month. The busiest 5% made 31 or more, the quietest 4 or fewer.
Middle half 4.4–17.5Harder end: 5% at 31.9 or moreEasier end: 5% at 3.5 or less
Middle half 3.3–8.5Harder end: 5% at 13.2 or moreEasier end: 5% at 2.5 or less
Middle half 68–233 hHarder end: 5% at ≈421 h or moreEasier end: 5% at ≈31 h or less
Context, not graded: the tint marks the harder and easier end of the fleet.
Month by month
12 monthsMedian flights per aircraft that flew that month · darker bar is the busiest month, March 2026
The data behind it
Every measure for the 37 of the 64 North American Learjet 31s with at least 40% of their flights tracked, 1 Aug 2025 – 31 Jul 2026.| Measure | Fleet median | Middle half |
|---|---|---|
| Flights a month In the months it flew | 9.7 | 4.4–17.5 |
| Days flown a month Days with at least one flight | 4.8 | 3.3–8.5 |
| Estimated hours a year From time in the air | ≈103 h | 68–233 h |
Buying, selling or financing a Learjet 31?
See where your Learjet 31 sits in the fleet.
Enter a tail number to place it against these 64 aircraft. TailCheck grades it on Fatigue, Corrosion, Engines and brakes, and Utilization, with every percentile shown.
Where Learjet 31s are based and fly
Buffalo Niagara is home to more Learjet 31s than any other field, 5 of the 54 with a home base.
Buffalo Niagara–Teterboro is the busiest route: 129 flights by 5 different aircraft.
Where Learjet 31s are based
| Field | Share | Aircraft |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Niagara | 5 | |
| Lancaster | 3 | |
| Washington | 2 | |
| Chino | 2 | |
| West Georgia | 2 | |
| Fort Lauderdale | 2 |
Busiest Learjet 31 routes
| Between | Flights |
|---|---|
| Buffalo Niagara ⇄ Teterboro | 129 flights |
| Burke Lakefront ⇄ Buffalo Niagara | 106 |
| Buffalo Niagara ⇄ Philadelphia | 86 |
| Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood ⇄ Tampa | 53 |
| Portland-Hillsboro ⇄ Portland | 39 |
| Buffalo Niagara ⇄ Washington Dulles | 38 |
Longest Learjet 31 flights
| Between | Distance · time |
|---|---|
| Sedona → Raleigh-Durham | 1,609 nm · 4 h 34 min |
| Gillespie → Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky | 1,605 nm · 4 h 27 min |
| Monterey → Chicago | 1,599 nm · 4 h 21 min |
| Phoenix Goodyear → Raleigh Memorial | 1,541 nm · 4 h 16 min |
| Deming → Washington Dulles | 1,523 nm · 3 h 38 min |
Busiest Learjet 31s this year
The busiest Learjet 31 made 41 flights a month, four times the middle aircraft.
Even the tenth on this list made 18.
Ranked by flights a month · updated monthly
| # | Tail | Base | Flights a month | Estimated hours a year | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | N240B | Buffalo Niagara | 41 | 423 h | Check this tail → |
| 2 | N171AR | Buffalo Niagara | 38 | 437 h | Check this tail → |
| 3 | N631KA | Silverhill Naval Outlying Landing | 30 | 421 h | Check this tail → |
| 4 | N8TG | Buffalo Niagara | 27 | 278 h | Check this tail → |
| 5 | N744N | Buffalo Niagara | 21 | 227 h | Check this tail → |
| 6 | N331US | Portland-Hillsboro | 21 | 233 h | Check this tail → |
| 7 | N30LJ | Tampa | 19 | 199 h | Check this tail → |
| 8 | N103JL | Buffalo Niagara | 19 | 205 h | Check this tail → |
| 9 | N90VJ | Lancaster | 18 | 160 h | Check this tail → |
| 10 | N1932K | Silverhill Naval Outlying Landing | 18 | 274 h | Check this tail → |
Learjet 31 vs other aircraft of its size
Medians for each North American fleet, same window and method.
| Type | Tracked | Flights a month | Hours a year | Median leg | Hours per landing | Short hops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bombardier Learjet 31 | 64 | 9.7 | 103 h | 266 nm | 1.1 : 1 | 53% |
| Embraer Phenom 300 | 581 | 17.1 | 272 h | 344 nm | 1.2 : 1 | 45% |
| Cessna Citation CJ2 | 483 | 5.0 | 74 h | 288 nm | 1.2 : 1 | 52% |
| Cessna Citation CJ3 | 527 | 9.0 | 148 h | 360 nm | 1.4 : 1 | 42% |
| Bombardier Learjet 45 | 360 | 7.4 | 113 h | 431 nm | 1.4 : 1 | 35% |
Learjet 31 on paper
Certified figures aren’t shown for the Bombardier Learjet 31: we haven’t cited a type certificate data sheet for it yet.
Chartering a Learjet 31
29 of the 64 North American Learjet 31s we track are on our charter list (45%).
Where charter Learjet 31s are based
| Field | Share | Aircraft |
|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Niagara | 5 | |
| Lancaster | 3 | |
| Washington | 2 | |
| Willoughby Lost Nation | 2 | |
| Silverhill Naval Outlying Landing | 2 | |
| Camarillo | 1 |
Charter status is our own list, built from FAA records and public listings of charter aircraft; aircraft flown by a fractional program (NetJets, Flexjet and the like) are counted as fractional, not charter. No charter rates: prices depend on the operator and the trip. Check a specific aircraft’s record with its tail number before you book.
Learjet 31 questions
How many hours a year does a Learjet 31 fly?
The median North American Learjet 31 flies about 103 estimated hours a year; the middle half sits between 68 and 233. About 1 in 20 flies more than 421.
How often does a Learjet 31 fly?
10 flights a month on 5 flying days at the median. About 1 in 20 makes more than 31 flights a month.
How long is a typical Learjet 31 flight?
The median leg is 266 nm. About 1 in 20 aircraft average more than 601 nm a leg.
How often do Learjet 31 aircraft use short runways?
At the median, 3% of departures are from fields whose longest runway is under 1.25 times the type’s takeoff distance. About 1 in 20 keep it to -0% or less.
Is a high-hours Learjet 31 a bad buy?
Not by itself. High hours on long legs are gentler on the structure than the same hours on short hops. Look at hours per landing and short-hop share alongside hours.
Where are most Learjet 31 aircraft based?
In North America, Buffalo Niagara is home to the most, followed by Lancaster and Washington. A base is the field an aircraft touches on most of its flying days, month after month.
Cite this data
The Aircraft Ledger. “Bombardier Learjet 31 fleet statistics.” Data to 31 July 2026. theaircraftledger.com/aircraft/bombardier/learjet-31
Embed a chart
<iframe src="https://theaircraftledger.com/embed/fleet/bombardier-learjet-31/fatigue" title="Fatigue" width="100%" height="1180" style="border:0;max-width:960px" loading="lazy"></iframe>Method: Bombardier Learjet 31 aircraft with most departures in North America and at least 20 tracked flights in the latest twelve full months. Flight measures, bases, routes and rankings use ADS-B tracking 1 Aug 2025 – 31 Jul 2026; corrosion and engines-and-brakes exposure use the same twelve months, or an aircraft’s record since 1 Jan 2025 when it had too few nights or departures in them. Estimated hours from time in the air. Tracking misses some flights, so counts and hours are minimums. ADS-B coverage grew over the window, so we don’t compare one year with the last. Tracking can’t tell one variant from another; the variant split, the busiest table’s variants and the age table use the FAA registry, so they cover US-registered aircraft only. We assume the longest runway at each field, so short-runway figures are conservative. Short-runway figures use the manufacturer’s published takeoff distance where our sources hold one for every variant (the longest, where tracking can’t tell variants apart), and a reference figure otherwise. Corrosion measures cover the aircraft we can place on enough nights, some over the longer window when the twelve months had too few. Charter status is our own list, built from FAA records and public listings of charter aircraft; aircraft flown by a fractional program (NetJets, Flexjet and the like) are counted as fractional, not charter. About our data