General aviation manufacturers had a much better 2021 than 2020.
According to the latest figures from the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, all aircraft segments in general aviation saw increases in shipments in 2021, with deliveries valued at $25.2 billion, an increase of 10.2% over 2020.
“The strength and tenacity of the general aviation industry has provided a strong foundation for the industry to rebound from pandemic-related setbacks with a powerful showing in 2021,” said Pete Bunce, GAMA President and CEO. “Total aircraft shipments are converging on figures that were seen before the outset of the pandemic.”
“The industry has been able to weather the storm by strategically managing workforce and supply chain challenges, which unfortunately are still ongoing,” he continued. “Despite this adversity, there is robust interest and excitement in our industry as we continue to further our advancements in innovation, technology and environmental sustainability.”
While 2021 sales were up, the “real story” about the health of the general aviation industry is in the backlog of orders for aircraft, according to Michael Amalfitano, GAMA chair and president and CEO of Embraer Executive Jets.
“Most OEMs are selling aircraft out through 2024,” he said, noting original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are also releasing new models. “Talk about resilience.”
While demand is sky high for general aviation aircraft, there are some challenges to meeting that demand. Chief among those are supply chain issues, inflation, and workforce issues.
“It seems as though we are in an arms race for talent,” noted Omer Bar-Yohay, a founder and board member of Eviation, a new company that is developing Alice, an all-electric commuter aircraft.
The 2021 Numbers
Airplane shipments in 2021, when compared to 2020, saw piston airplane deliveries increase 5.5% to 1,393; turboprop airplane deliveries increase 19% to 527; and business jet deliveries increase 10.2% to 710.
The preliminary value of airplane deliveries for 2021 was $21.6 billion, an increase of approximately 7.6%.
Piston helicopter deliveries for 2021, when compared to 2020, saw an increase of 27.5% to 181; and preliminary civil-commercial turbine helicopter increase 24.8% to 645. The preliminary value of helicopter deliveries for 2021 was $3.7 billion, an increase of approximately 28%.
The piston engine airplane market in North America accounted for 68.7% of overall shipments. The second largest market for piston airplanes for the seventh year in a row was the Asia-Pacific market at 14.4%.
Turboprop airplane shipments to North American customers accounted for 52.6% of global deliveries. The second largest market for turboprop airplane deliveries was the Latin American market at 15.7%.
The North American market accounted for 65.9% of business jet deliveries. The second largest market for business jet deliveries during the year was Europe at 18%.
The complete year-end report, which includes a breakdown of deliveries by manufacturer and model, can be found at GAMA.aero.
It’s nice to see “positive” data. But, one really has to wonder how viable a market is when an increase of 72 piston delivers *world wide* is something to crow about. Lamborghini alone sells more exotic super cars than that. In fact, Lamborghini alone sold more than 7000 units in 2020. So, just one exotic car company, selling cars with prices that rival a lot of piston aircraft, managed to sell more than double the total of *all* of the GA aircraft, of all types, sold. That doesn’t sound like a particularly healthy market to me.
In fact, one might wonder if they are even selling enough piston aircraft to result in a positive (or even net zero) replacement rate for the worldwide fleet? And, if not, doesn’t that mean the market is already unsustainable?
And no where near the tracking, communicating, fueling, parking, ramp check, logging and AD problems. Plus when you go for a hamburger you get to show it off to more people!…lol