Inside Scottsdale: 4,505 Empty Leg Departures Across 380 Destinations

Scottsdale Airport (KSDL) generates 4,505 cross-region empty leg departures to 380 distinct destinations over a rolling 12-month window of listings. That makes Scottsdale one of the highest-volume outbound empty leg hubs in the American Southwest — a fact that shapes pricing, timing, and availability for private flyers across the region.

What the data shows

SkyAccess tracks every empty leg listed through its marketplace, which spans more than 5,000 live listings from 900+ FAA Part 135-certified charter operators. Among all US departure hubs, Scottsdale Airport consistently ranks near the top for cross-region outbound volume. Browse the live Scottsdale Airport empty leg listings to see current availability. The 4,505 departures in this analysis count only legs that leave the state of Arizona — trips bound for California, Nevada, Colorado, Texas, Illinois, and beyond. They do not include intra-state positioning legs, so the number reflects genuinely sellable repositioning inventory that connects Scottsdale with the broader national network.

Across those 4,505 departures, operators reached 380 separate destination airports. That geographic breadth reflects the diversity of Scottsdale’s charter demand: the city draws corporate travelers, resort guests, golf visitors, and event-goers whose return flights generate repositioning legs in all directions.

Top destination cities for Scottsdale empty legs

The busiest outbound corridor from Scottsdale runs to Las Vegas — the Scottsdale to Las Vegas corridor absorbed the largest share of cross-region legs at roughly 522 departures when combining both Las Vegas-area airports. That level of traffic makes the Scottsdale-to-Las-Vegas route one of the most consistently supplied empty leg corridors in the Southwest.

Los Angeles follows as the second busiest destination metro, drawing 254 departures via the Scottsdale to Los Angeles route. The Los Angeles basin’s multiple private aviation airports — with Van Nuys receiving the largest share — give operators flexibility in how they deliver their aircraft. Orange County added a further 185 legs, making the broader Southern California cluster by far the dominant destination region from Scottsdale.

Beyond Southern California and Nevada, the flow diversifies considerably. Salt Lake City drew 114 departures, establishing a well-supplied Utah corridor. Denver received 105 legs, connecting Arizona’s desert metro to Colorado’s mountain-gateway airports. San Diego added 100 departures, and Aspen captured 99, reflecting seasonal demand from Scottsdale’s resort-and-ski traveler profile. Chicago drew 99 legs, demonstrating that Scottsdale’s repositioning reach extends well into the Midwest.

Why Scottsdale generates this volume

Scottsdale’s empty leg output reflects how charter aircraft actually move. When a client charters a jet from, say, Los Angeles to Scottsdale for a golf trip, the operator needs to reposition that aircraft before its next booking. If no inbound charter is waiting, the leg back to California becomes an empty leg — available to any buyer at 25 to 75 percent below the cost of a comparable full charter. That savings range is a market reality, not a promotional figure; it is sourced from Avinode industry data and cited across SkyAccess listings.

Scottsdale sees this dynamic play out at scale because the city is a high-frequency inbound market: golf tournaments, spring training, resort weekends, and corporate retreats pull aircraft in from across the country all year. Each inbound client trip creates a potential outbound empty leg, and with 380 destination airports in the data, it is clear that Scottsdale operators reposition to nearly every major private aviation hub in the United States.

Reading the flow: seasonality and corridor balance

The rolling 12-month window of listings captures the full annual pattern. Scottsdale’s hospitality season peaks in the cooler months — roughly October through May — when the region hosts PGA Tour events and peak resort occupancy. That seasonal pulse produces an above-average volume of inbound charters during winter and spring, which in turn generates a corresponding surge in outbound empty legs. Summer months see lower overall volume but sustained departures to Nevada and California as operators reposition for events in those states.

The directional balance across 380 destinations also matters. Because Scottsdale is primarily a net inbound market for charter aviation, outbound empty legs tend to outnumber inbound empty legs — which means buyers searching for flights to Scottsdale have somewhat fewer options than those looking to depart from it. That imbalance is exactly the signal that data-savvy empty leg buyers use to time their searches.

How empty leg pricing works from Scottsdale

Empty legs are priced by the operator, not by the marketplace. SkyAccess publishes the listed price directly from the operator’s offer. For a Scottsdale-to-Los-Angeles leg, that price is typically set to make the repositioning worthwhile at a fraction of the full charter rate. Because the operator needs to move the aircraft regardless of whether a passenger pays, the floor price is lower than a standard charter — often substantially so. The canonical range of 25 to 75 percent savings reflects real market data across hundreds of routes and aircraft types.

Buyers who set up alerts for Scottsdale outbound legs can capture this value efficiently. The SkyAccess marketplace allows filtering by origin, destination, and date window, so a buyer targeting, say, a Scottsdale-to-Las-Vegas leg can monitor available inventory and book when pricing aligns with their schedule. With over 500 annual legs on that corridor alone, options are frequent.

Frequently asked questions

Which destinations get the most Scottsdale empty legs?

Over a rolling 12-month window of listings, Las Vegas leads with roughly 522 departures across its two main private aviation airports, followed by Los Angeles (254 legs), Orange County (185 legs), Salt Lake City (114 legs), and Denver (105 legs). The top 8 destination cities account for the majority of Scottsdale’s 4,505 cross-region outbound departures, with San Diego (100 legs), Aspen (99 legs), and Chicago (99 legs) rounding out the busiest corridors.

How many empty leg flights depart from Scottsdale?

SkyAccess data shows 4,505 cross-region empty leg departures from Scottsdale Airport (KSDL) over a rolling 12-month window of listings. These legs reach 380 distinct destination airports across the United States and reflect the repositioning flights generated after inbound charter trips to Scottsdale for golf, resort, and corporate travel. The count excludes intra-Arizona positioning legs.

How much can you save on Scottsdale empty leg flights?

Scottsdale empty leg flights are typically priced at 25 to 75 percent below the cost of a comparable full charter on the same route. That range, sourced from Avinode industry data, reflects the operator’s need to reposition the aircraft rather than fly it empty with no revenue. Actual savings depend on the specific route, aircraft type, and timing of the available leg.

This data is citable with attribution to SkyAccess. For same-day custom pulls, contact press@theskyaccess.com.