Analysis from Mike Yeomans, Head of Advisory Services at IBA, the leading aviation intelligence and advisory company, shows that Base Values for factory-built and converted Boeing 747-400 freighters have risen steeply by an average of 114% from Q2 2026 to Q3 2026. This increase reflects the enduring economic value of their engines and components despite the fleet’s average age of over 26 years.

The revised Base Values form part of IBA’s latest Market Value and Market Lease Rate update, in which IBA’s global team of aviation experts reviewed 94 commercial passenger and freighter aircraft models.

Data from IBA’s Intelligence platform showed that Base Values for popular converted narrowbody freighters, including Boeing 737-800 and Airbus A321-200 variants, increased by an average of approximately 17%, supported by higher engine values, stronger feedstock pricing assumptions, and growing recognition of established and OEM-supported conversion programmes.

Newer Boeing 777 converted freighter programmes also gained ground, with Base Values for the Boeing 777-200LRMF rising by an average of 17% and for the Boeing 777-300ERSF by an average of 19%,reflecting stronger demand and growing market confidence in both programmes.

Beyond the freighter market, intelligence from IBA points to an increasingly nuanced outlook in which narrowbody lease rates are softening from recent scarcity-driven peaks, while underlying aircraft values remain supported by strong demand for engines and components. Delivery constraints, meanwhile, continue to underpin lease rates and values across the widebody market.

This divergence is particularly evident with the latest generation narrowbodies, where IBA is observing a growing gap between the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX 8. New A320neo aircraft continue to command market lease rates at or above US$400,000 per month, while recent placements of new 737 MAX 8 aircraft have consistently been observed below that level, typically in the high US$300,000s per month. 

Among five-year-old A320neo and 737 MAX 8 aircraft, lease rate softening has been more pronounced as engine and component values play an increasingly significant role in overall asset economics.

The teardown of relatively young aircraft, previously concentrated among Pratt & Whitney-powered A320neo family aircraft, is now also being observed within the Boeing 737 MAX fleet. This shift reflects the attractiveness of engines as standalone assets amid high maintenance costs, constrained MRO capacity and component shortages.

A similar adjustment is taking place across the previous generation narrowbody market, albeit to a greater extent. Since July 2025, the monthly market lease rate for a 12-year-old Boeing 737-800 has declined by approximately 11%, from US$255,000 to US$228,000, while the rate for a 12-year-old Airbus A320-200 has fallen by approximately 13%, from US$253,000 to US$220,000.

IBA expects increasing availability in the secondary market, combined with an easing of the exceptional demand previously seen among operators, to continue placing pressure on lease rates across parts of the narrowbody sector. However, persistent demand for engines and scarce components means that this softening has not resulted in equivalent reductions in underlying aircraft values.

Source: IBA