JETNET, AMSTAT or Jet Tracker: which database truly covers Brazilian aviation?
The global platforms are the benchmark in the American market. The right question is a different one: who actually processes Brazil?
Anyone working in business aviation runs into the two names early: JETNET and AMSTAT, the databases the North American market has relied on for decades to know who operates what, what is for sale and for how much. The question that follows, from brokers, MROs, insurers and lenders, is always the same: and for the Brazilian fleet, which one actually works?
JETNET and AMSTAT are the global references in fleet data, with well-earned depth in the United States market. Their public materials describe exactly that strength; what those materials do not describe is an offering for the layers that define Brazil: the corporate ownership records behind each operator, the RBAC 135 air taxi classification and continuous reading of the RAB, Brazil's civil aircraft registry. That is the space Jet Tracker occupies: the Brazilian platform that brings registry, real ownership, flight activity, market and operating cost together in one place, with public pricing.
What the global platforms do very well
None of this diminishes either company. JETNET and AMSTAT built, over decades, the world standard for fleet intelligence: transaction history in the American market, detailed specifications, broker and representative networks, market research. Anyone trading aircraft in the United States or running a global search for a specific model has a consolidated instrument in both, sold as corporate subscriptions with pricing on request.
The strength of a database is not its logo: it is which registry it reads every day, in which language, and with how much local depth.
The honest comparison, criterion by criterion
| Criterion | JETNET / AMSTAT | RAB by hand (free) | Jet Tracker |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geographic focus | United States and the global market | Brazil (official ANAC source) | Brazil in depth, with the FAA registry as support |
| Real owner behind the company | No documented offering for Brazilian corporate records | Not shown (requires separate lookups) | Cross-referenced with corporate ownership records |
| Air taxi (RBAC 135) | RBAC 135 absent from the documented offering | Requires checking certificates operator by operator | Classified tail by tail |
| Registry tracking | Public offering centered on the North American market | Manual lookup, one tail at a time | Continuous RAB ingestion, with history |
| Flight, market and cost together | Strong on specs and U.S. transactions | Not covered | Cross-referenced in one place, by tail and by model |
| Language and pricing | English, subscription on request | Portuguese, free | Portuguese, public pricing on the plans page |
The one-sentence summary: the global platforms answer "what is this aircraft and what is its history in the world market"; the RAB answers "what ANAC has on file"; Jet Tracker answers "who really operates it, how much it flies, what it is worth and what it costs, in Brazil, today".
The four layers Brazil demands
- The RAB read continuously. Brazil's registry changes every week: tails come in, drop out, change operators, become mark reservations. Without continuous reading, the picture ages in days.
- Corporate ownership records. In Brazil, the aircraft is rarely registered to the company of the person who decides. A useful answer means climbing the chain: operator, company, shareholders, group.
- RBAC 135, not industry codes. Air taxi in Brazil is defined by ANAC's operating certificate (RBAC 135, akin to Part 135). A database that does not classify it cannot tell you who may fly commercially.
- Portuguese and local context. Costs in reais and dollars, Brazilian fuel prices, exchange rates, import taxes. The Brazilian market speaks and calculates in another currency.
How to choose, case by case
- Broker with cross-border deals: a global platform for the model's international history, Jet Tracker to know who is who in the Brazilian fleet and where the next mandate is.
- MRO, operator, insurer or lender in Brazil: the data that closes deals here is local (real ownership, RBAC 135, declared base, registry movement), which is exactly the layer absent from the global platforms' documented offering.
- A one-off question about a single tail: start with the free RAB lookup. When the question becomes "and the whole fleet?", manual lookups stop scaling.
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Frequently asked questions
Is there a Brazilian JETNET?
The expression sums up the gap well: a database with the depth JETNET has in the American market, built for Brazilian sources (the RAB registry from ANAC, federal corporate ownership records, RBAC 135, local market and costs, in Portuguese). That is the space Jet Tracker occupies, and the criterion-by-criterion comparison is on this page.
Do JETNET and AMSTAT cover Brazil?
Their documented depth is in the North American market. Brazilian registrations appear in the global databases, but federal corporate ownership records, RBAC 135 classification and continuous reading of the RAB are not part of their public offering.
How much do JETNET and AMSTAT cost?
Both sell corporate subscriptions with pricing on request, negotiated contract by contract. They do not publish a price list. Jet Tracker publishes open pricing on its plans page.
Is the free RAB lookup enough?
For checking a single registration, yes, and the RAB is the official source. The limit shows up at scale: lookups are one by one, they do not reveal the real owner behind the company, there is no history or fleet-wide view, and nothing is cross-referenced with flying, market and cost.