Writer

Mark Phelps

Forgive the obvious pun, but our vision for 2020 starts here.

 


As a news organization, it’s AIN’s job to stick to reporting on what has already happened. One exception is this time, every year. In the following segments, you’ll read what we believe to be the outlook for key elements of our industry for the next 12 months—views inevitably shaped by the past, but with an eye toward what we believe is just beyond the immediate horizon.

 


You’ll get our take on the immediate future of eVTOL, not the lofty aspirations of the over-optimistic, but the cold reality; the bubbling cauldron of election-year politics as it impacts our industry; 2020’s outlook for what’s in line for the FBO industry; what’s on tap for OEMs in an ever-volatile market; avionics in the wake of the ADS-B (soft?) deadline; and what you can expect to see on the shop floors—and in the order books—of MROs.

 


So, how did we do last year? Here are some samples of what we were projecting for 2019:

 


eVTOL: “Even if eVTOLs win public acceptance and clear regulatory and technological hurdles, can OEMs and service providers deliver the technology at a price the general public can afford?” That remains the biggest open question in aviation. 
 
	 
 
	Touchscreens: “It won’t be a surprise to see more manufacturers adopting this technology, especially as younger tech-savvy pilots move up the flying food chain to more sophisticated aircraft.” Twelve months later, that seems on track.

 


Supersonics: “Through 2019, Aerion and its partners will be initiating the process of selecting Tier 1 suppliers for the next phase of development.” This predated the February 2019 announcement of Boeing’s investment and involvement in the AS2 project. Since then, the program has gone largely silent.

 


Come January 2021, we’ll take another look back at this year’s look forward.

Our 2020 Vision:

AIN takes its annual look ahead at key elements of the aviation industry

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