2019 Midyear Shipment Numbers Mixed

The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) detailed a rise in piston airplane and business jet deliveries and a drop in turboprop airplane and rotorcraft shipments over the first six months of 2019 in its second quarter (Q2) report, which was released on Monday. At approximately $9.0 billion, the total value of the airplane deliveries by the end of Q2 went up by 12.9 percent over midyear 2018’s $8.0 billion. Overall rotorcraft billings dropped by 13.1 percent to about $1.5 billion compared to 2018 numbers.

“While the year-to-date aircraft shipments are mixed, this should not obscure the outlook for a bright future for general aviation,” said GAMA CEO Pete Bunce. “Our midyear report shows new aircraft reaching entry into service milestones with additional models expected to enter into service before the end of 2019 … Additionally, our industry’s continued emphasis on developing airframes, engines, and avionics that improve fuel efficiency, our aggressive pursuit of hybrid and electrically propelled air vehicles, and promotion of the build out of the Sustainable Aviation Fuel infrastructure, should make us all proud of our collective commitment to environmental sustainability.”

As shown in the cart below, the most notable increase was in the piston airplane market, with deliveries at 567 units so far for the year, up 15.2 percent from the same period in 2018. Business jet shipments saw a 12.5 percent rise to 316 aircraft in 2019. Piston rotorcraft saw the largest decrease, dropping 26.2 percent to 110 deliveries. Turbine rotorcraft and turboprop airplanes saw decreases of 11.3 and 11.2 percent respectively. According to GAMA, second-quarter shipment data was not available from three airplane manufacturers at the time the report was published. Its Q2 report will be updated once that information is provided.