Aftermarket Parts Searches Jumped 34.5% in September, Locatory Data Shows

September 2026 posted the highest parts-search volume in Locatory.com's 2026 data, up 34.5% from August and closing Q3 at a record level for the platform. The aftermarket marketplace attributes the surge to the onset of the autumn heavy-maintenance season, and its data shows demand concentrated not in exotic components but in routine consumables.

Standard hardware and seals formed the largest search category. Engine components ranked second, at 31% of the global Top 50 and 25% of the North American list. Electrical and avionics accounted for 14% of global searches and 12% in North America. Airframe, landing gear, cabin and chemical items made up the smallest shares.

What does this change for buyers and suppliers? Mostly timing. Locatory.com's reports state plainly: "Heavy maintenance season does not create demand for one specific component. It creates requirements across large numbers of relatively routine parts." That means procurement teams face volume, not novelty. The parts in question include fasteners removed during access, seals and gaskets replaced during reassembly, bearings inspected or changed, and hardware consumed across multiple systems.

How do North American and global demand differ?

Not by much, according to Locatory.com. The company cautioned against overreading the regional splits: "Because these differences come from a relatively small group of items from the Top 50, the September findings should not be interpreted as two fundamentally different demand profiles. North American demand is highly consistent with the wider sourcing pattern."

The differences that do exist are item-specific. "Global list unique parts include four Boeing 737 engine accessories and an integrated drive generator, which is why engine components and electrical items run higher globally," the reports note. "North America's unique quotes include five fasteners and bushings, which is why standard hardware runs higher there, plus a B787 heater assembly and one compressor diffuser."

Unique global searches included:

• 2-8041-1 hydraulic system fuse, B737
• 761574B integrated drive generator, B737
• 3214552-5 pressure regulator and shutoff valve, B737
• 107492-6 bleed air regulator valve, B737
• 518888-1 igniter, B737

Unique North American searches included bolts in the Airbus standard titanium series (ABS0114V5-22X), bushings for the B737NG and 757 (AJ18C105DU), CherryMax rivets (CR3243-4-02, CR3524PR6-03), a B787 heater assembly (HBC303) and a compressor diffuser (1600D072).

What led the standard hardware category?

The most-searched items map directly onto shop-floor consumption. They included rivets (CR3522-5-03, CR3524-6-03), a pin-rivet collar (BACC30M6), bolts (D5537002021000, BACB30PN14-32M, A32266), nuts (S700N1518, 52U629, BH01227-08L, BACN11R3), gaskets (2330-0055, 771884), a seal (2256M75P01), a washer (208501-89), a spring (975101-10) and a pin (30-2121003-00).

Eight engine parts carried over from August's global list, suggesting sustained rather than spike-driven demand on certain part numbers.

Which engine parts drew the most searches?

Demand split by platform rather than region. On narrowbodies, the top items were a CFM56-5B bolt for the A320 family (83769H16-14), a B737 transducer (1680-654), a B737 temperature sensor (3171784-9) and an A320-family inlet cowl assembly (642-1000-49).

Widebody and regional searches included a cable (491B1220017-029) and an LPT stage 3 blade (50N203), both compatible with the B767 and B747, an ERJ-190 rear engine mount bolt (2093M29P02), a B757 ignition plug (305766-1), a tie bolt (2613109), a seal (167446-200) and a pump assembly (63508412-1).

The electrical and avionics list included a TCAS upper antenna (622-8973-001), a B737NG solenoid electrical assembly (63000933-1), a multi-function radar display (80-5204-13-5), a resolver (4039572-5), a B737NG diode pack (763226-14) and a relay (N130-6520).

Airframe and landing gear demand stayed thin, with the same five parts on both lists: an A320-family pin assembly (83647-14-1), a 737 bearing (DAS10-26B1-504), an A320-family pipe (744A1200-02), an A320-family landing gear bearing (201587209) and a rudder damper assembly (FE205-000). Cabin searches centered on a Boeing smoke hood protective breathing equipment unit (E28180-20-0006) and a spindle (2842114-1), with repair filler (675W0003-1) the lone chemical on each list.

Locatory.com frames the open question itself: "With September closing Q3 at the highest search volume recorded in Locatory.com 2026 data, the key question for the final quarter is whether this broader pattern persists." Its forthcoming reports will track which shortages recur and where buyers may need to plan earlier, widen supplier coverage or adjust sourcing strategies.