The Secret Airports: Where Private Jets Really Land

Ask most people where a private jet lands in New York and they say JFK. In London, Heathrow. In Paris, Charles de Gaulle.

They are almost always wrong.

We looked at 19,807 empty legs, private jet flights published by 79 charter operators between 31 July and 18 October 2026, and counted every take-off and landing by airport. The data comes from Empty Leg List (emptylegslist.com). In city after city, the big airline hubs barely appear. Private jets use a different set of airports, most of which travellers have never heard of.

Here is the map insiders use.

New York: Teterboro, not JFK

Empty leg take-offs and landings by airport:

• Teterboro (TEB): 1,218 (60.9%)
• Westchester County, White Plains (HPN): 255 (12.8%)
• Republic, Farmingdale (FRG): 215 (10.8%)
• Long Island MacArthur, Islip (ISP): 183 (9.2%)
• Morristown (MMU): 74 (3.7%)
• JFK: 27 (1.4%)
• Newark (EWR): 15 (0.8%)
• LaGuardia (LGA): 12 (0.6%)

JFK, Newark and LaGuardia together handle 2.7% of New York's empty legs. Teterboro, in New Jersey and closer to Midtown Manhattan than JFK, handles six in ten. It is the busiest empty leg airport in our entire dataset, and 165 legs to or from it are listed right now.

London: Luton, Farnborough and Biggin Hill, not Heathrow

• Luton (LTN): 429 (52.2%)
• Farnborough (FAB): 123 (15.0%)
• Biggin Hill (BQH): 101 (12.3%)
• Stansted (STN): 93 (11.3%)
• Oxford (OXF): 56 (6.8%)
• London City (LCY): 18 (2.2%)
• Heathrow (LHR): 1
• Gatwick (LGW): 1

Heathrow and Gatwick together: 2 empty legs out of 822. Heathrow's slots go to airlines, and private jets have long since moved to airports built for them. Luton handles more than half of London's empty legs, and 79 are listed there now.

Miami: Opa Locka, not Miami International

• Miami Opa Locka Executive (OPF): 1,044 (67.1%)
• Fort Lauderdale (FLL): 216 (13.9%)
• Fort Lauderdale Executive (FXE): 171 (11.0%)
• Miami International (MIA): 96 (6.2%)
• Miami Executive, Tamiami (TMB): 30 (1.9%)

Two out of three Miami empty legs use Opa Locka. With 187 legs listed right now, it has more live empty legs than any other airport we track. For prices and the best days to fly, see our guide to empty legs to Miami.

Los Angeles: Van Nuys, not LAX

• Van Nuys (VNY): 605 (68.8%)
• John Wayne, Orange County (SNA): 156 (17.7%)
• Burbank (BUR): 49 (5.6%)
• LAX: 39 (4.4%)
• Long Beach (LGB): 29 (3.3%)

Van Nuys, in the San Fernando Valley, handles more than two thirds of LA's empty legs. LAX gets fewer than 1 in 20.

Paris: Le Bourget, and almost nothing else

• Le Bourget (LBG): 219 (99.1%)
• Charles de Gaulle (CDG): 2
• Orly (ORY): 0

The most one-sided city in our data. If a private jet flies to Paris, it lands at Le Bourget, the business aviation airport north of the city, which also hosts the Paris Air Show.

Chicago: three private airports, not O'Hare

• DuPage (DPA): 189 (41.4%)
• Chicago Executive (PWK): 129 (28.3%)
• Midway (MDW): 128 (28.1%)
• O'Hare (ORD): 10 (2.2%)

One of the busiest airports in the world handles 10 empty legs out of 456.

The two exceptions

Not every city follows the pattern.

Las Vegas: Harry Reid International (LAS) handles 240 empty legs (65.4%), Henderson Executive (HSH) 127 (34.6%). The main airport has a large private aviation side, so jets use it.

Washington, DC: Dulles (IAD) handles 289 empty legs (91.2%), Leesburg (JYO) 25. Reagan National (DCA), the airport closest to the city, has 3. Private flights into DCA face strict security rules, so Dulles takes almost all of them.

On the Riviera

• Nice (NCE): 253 (65.5%)
• Cannes Mandelieu (CEQ): 133 (34.5%)

Cannes Mandelieu is the small airport on the coast, a few minutes from the Croisette, and it takes a third of the Riviera's empty legs.

Why private jets avoid the big airports

Big hubs are built for airlines: limited slots, long taxi times, busy terminals. Business aviation airports have private terminals (FBOs) where you drive up to the aircraft, clear security in minutes and leave without a queue. For operators, they are simpler to get into at short notice, which matters for an empty leg that might be listed only a few days before it flies.

How to use this when you search for an empty leg

1. Search the metro area, not one airport. In New York, check Teterboro, White Plains, Farmingdale, Islip and Morristown.
2. Never search only the airline hub. You would miss 97% of New York legs, 94% of Miami legs and 99.8% of London legs.
3. Set your alert by city. An alert for London on emptylegslist.com covers Luton, Farnborough, Biggin Hill, Stansted and the rest.
4. Check the drive time. Teterboro and Van Nuys can be closer to where you are going than the hub.

Empty legs at the secret airports right now

Frequently asked questions

Where do private jets land in New York?

Mostly at Teterboro (TEB), with 60.9% of empty legs in our data, followed by White Plains, Farmingdale, Islip and Morristown. JFK, Newark and LaGuardia together handle 2.7%.

Do private jets use Heathrow?

Very rarely. Of 822 London empty legs, Heathrow and Gatwick handled 2. Most use Luton (52.2%), Farnborough, Biggin Hill and Stansted.

Which airport do private jets use in Paris?

Le Bourget (LBG), with 99.1% of Paris empty legs in our data.

Which Miami airport do private jets use?

Miami Opa Locka Executive (OPF), with 67.1% of Miami-area empty legs.

Which LA airport do private jets use?

Van Nuys (VNY), with 68.8% of LA-area empty legs. LAX handled 4.4%.

About the data

Data: Empty Leg List (emptylegslist.com). 19,807 empty legs published by charter operators on their own websites and feeds, first seen between 31 July and 18 October 2026. Counts are take-offs plus landings at each airport. Percentages are shares of each city's listed airports. Live counts in the text are legs listed on 18 October 2026 with a departure date that day or later; the boxes above update through the day.

See every empty leg listed right now at emptylegslist.com.