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Michigan Air Tour & Scenic Flight Operator Rankings & Safety Report

zReports Research Institute · Updated October 2026

Bythe zReports Aviation Safety Research Team · zReports Research Institute Data sourcezReports Consumer Intelligence Database™ v2026.10 Facilities analyzed61 Government sourcesthe FAA and the NTSB under 49 CFR Part 830 mandatory accident reporting Last updatedOctober 2026 MethodologyConsumer Z Score™ · Database v2026.10

Michigan has 61 active licensed air tour operators on the state's public file. zReports analyzed NTSB federal aviation accident records (49 CFR Part 830 mandatory reporting) to produce a records layer grade for every one, the government's own verdicts, mapped through one fixed rule. No facility can pay to change a score, and the grade is free.

Key findings

61active licensed air tour operators across 17 Michigan cities appear on the state's public file.
100%hold an A or B records layer grade.
85is the statewide average records layer score across all graded air tour operators.
Traverse Cityis the highest-scoring larger city (20 facilities, average score 85).
Traverse Cityhas the most licensed air tour operators in the state (20).

Key statistics

StatisticValue
Active licensed air tour operators61
Cities covered17
Statewide average records layer score85
Grade A facilities61 (100%)
Facilities with a clean record (no deficiencies on file)61 (100%)
Serious (high severity) findings on the record0
Moderate findings on the record0

By city

Traverse City (20)Mackinac Island (15)Grand Rapids (9)Waterford Township (2)St Ignace (2)Georgetown Township (2)Detroit (1)Coldwater (1)Charlevoix (1)Alpena (1)Kentwood (1)Grosse Ile Township (1)Belleville (1)Manistee (1)South Haven (1)Sparta (1)Grawn (1)

Statewide top 25

#1 45 North Aviation Traverse City · A-

#2 A & S Travels Grand Rapids · A-

#3 Arch Rock Mackinac Island · A-

#4 Arnold Transit - Dock #2 Mackinac Island · A-

#5 Arnold Transit - Island Main Dock Mackinac Island · A-

#6 Aspen Travel Grand Rapids · A-

#7 Avflight Grand Rapids Grand Rapids · A-

#8 Avflight Grand Rapids Grr Grand Rapids · A-

#9 Avflight Traverse City Tvc Traverse City · A-

#10 Azura Helicopter Tours Of Detroit Detroit · A-

#11 Blue Lakes By The Bay Traverse City · A-

#12 Brew Bus Traverse City · A-

#13 Cherry Capital Airport Traverse City · A-

#14 Detroit Helicopters Waterford Township · A-

#15 Devil S Kitchen Mackinac Island · A-

#16 Discovery Cruises Traverse City · A-

#17 Discovery Traverse City Tours Traverse City · A-

#18 Eagle Point Cave Mackinac Island · A-

#19 Easyrotor Helicopter & Aviation Systems Grand Rapids · A-

#20 Elite Air Services Coldwater · A-

#21 Experience Grand Rapids Grand Rapids · A-

#22 Fresh Air Aviation Charlevoix · A-

#23 Gerald R Ford International Airport Grand Rapids · A-

#24 Gerald R Ford International Airport Viewing Park Grand Rapids · A-

#25 Giving Wings Aviation Traverse City · A-

Don't see a name? Search it. Every air tour operator has an answer.

Methodology

The free grade on this page contains zero zReports judgment: it maps the state's own published licensing and enforcement verdicts through one fixed rule, applied identically to every air tour operator in America. Where the record and public reputation diverge, a highly reviewed facility with serious findings on file, the paid Consumer Intelligence Report™ surfaces it through the composite Consumer Z Score™ and our published ten point methodology. Facilities are never contacted and cannot pay to change a score. Read the full methodology →

About air tour operator licensing in Michigan

Adventure aviation operators in Michigan fall under federal oversight: the FAA and the NTSB under 49 CFR Part 830 mandatory accident reporting requires operators to report qualifying accidents, and those filings are mandatory, public, and permanent, the one surface no operator can reputation manage. This page is computed from that federal record.

Frequently asked questions

How many air tour operators are there in Michigan?

Michigan has 61 active licensed air tour operators on the state's public file, across 17 cities. Every one has a free records layer grade on zReports.

Which Michigan city has the most air tour operators?

Traverse City, with 20 licensed air tour operators, followed by Mackinac Island (15) and Grand Rapids (9).

How are Michigan air tour operator grades calculated?

The free records layer grade contains zero zReports judgment. It maps the government's own published verdicts, NTSB federal aviation accident records (49 CFR Part 830 mandatory reporting), through one fixed rule, applied identically to every air tour operator in the country. The paid Consumer Intelligence Report™ adds the composite Consumer Z Score™, which audits the record against public reputation through our published ten point methodology.

Why can a facility with 5-star reviews have a low grade?

Reviews and records are different surfaces. Reviews reflect what visitors chose to write, and can be managed by the business. Inspection and enforcement records are filed by the state, are mandatory, and cannot be edited by the facility. When the two diverge, the record is the surface worth checking. That divergence is exactly what zReports was built to surface.

How often are these rankings updated?

Rankings refresh whenever Michigan republishes its licensing data; facility pages carry the records-verified date for each provider. This page was generated from the current file as of October 2026.

Can a facility pay to change its score?

No. Facilities are never contacted, never notified, and cannot pay to be listed, delisted, or re-scored. zReports has no business relationship with any facility it grades, independence is the product.

Data Provenance

This report was generated from the zReports Consumer Records Database™, a continuously updated database that normalizes official government licensing, inspection, enforcement, ownership, and safety records across multiple federal and state agencies. Every statistic in this report is traceable to its originating public record. Facilities cannot pay to alter scores, rankings, or findings.

Data source: zReports Consumer Intelligence Database™ v2026.10 · Built from: FAA operator records · NTSB CAROL accident database (49 CFR Part 830 mandatory filings) · Public consumer review signals (audited, never trusted, in the composite Consumer Z Score™) · Proprietary Consumer Z Score™ methodology · Updated: October 2026

Cite this report

APA, zReports Research Institute. (2026). Michigan Air Tour & Scenic Flight Operator Rankings & Safety Report (v2026.10). zReports.org. https://zreports.org/rankings/airtour/mi

MLA, zReports Research Institute. “Michigan Air Tour & Scenic Flight Operator Rankings & Safety Report.” zReports.org, v2026.10, October 2026, zreports.org/rankings/airtour/mi.

Plain, Michigan Air Tour & Scenic Flight Operator Rankings & Safety Report, zReports Research Institute, v2026.10, updated October 2026, zreports.org/rankings/airtour/mi

Related research

Air Tour & Scenic Flight Operators in all states → Traverse City rankings →Mackinac Island rankings →Grand Rapids rankings → zReports Data Blog → How the Consumer Z Score™ works →