The latest Avionics Market Report from the Aircraft Electronics Association shows there was more than $568 million in business and general aviation avionics sales in the first three months of 2021.
And while that’s a 13.9% decrease in total sales compared to the $660 million sold in the first quarter of 2020, there is some bright news on the horizon, according to AEA officials.
Sales in January, February, and March 2021 represented a nearly 1% increase in sales from the fourth quarter of 2020 and marked the third consecutive quarter of increasing sales, association officials noted.
The truly bright spot in the latest report: Forward-fit sales — avionics installed by aircraft manufacturers during original production — increased 18.7% over the fourth quarter of 2020.
Of the more than $568 million in first-quarter 2021 sales, 53.7% came from the retrofit market (avionics equipment installed after original production), while forward-fit sales amounted to 46.3% of first-quarter sales.
According to the companies that separated their total sales figures between North America (U.S. and Canada) and other international markets, 76% of the first-quarter sales volume occurred in North America, while 24% took place in other international markets.
“With avionics sales trending in the right direction over the last nine months, it appears that a slow and steady industry recovery is underway,” said AEA President and CEO Mike Adamson. “The last six months of 2020 saw a rebound in retrofit sales, and it’s encouraging to see forward-fit sales up sharply from the previous quarter in the aircraft manufacturing sector. As new products are introduced at the AEA Convention in June and EAA’s AirVenture in July, I’m hopeful that avionics manufacturers will be able to clear some of the supply chain hurdles they face and continue this upward trend.”