Along with the commercial and networking benefits the Regional Airline Association Convention offers, the annual event gives showgoers a chance to discuss the state of the industry and its prospects for the future. Lately, it has been more “commiserate” than “discuss.” Of course, some opinions carry more weight than others, and for years Rolls-Royce has enjoyed a relatively high degree of credibility when it comes to predicting the market for regional aircraft. After a year’s hiatus, the maker of the Rolls-Royce AE3007 series of turbofans issued another optimistic outlook during the May 18 to 21 RAA show in Phoenix, both in the segment where its own RJ engine market resides and beyond.
While skeptics of such purveyors of prognostication often correctly point out that the companies involved in forecasting carry a vested interest in issuing a positive outlook for their own products, Rolls-Royce prefaced its predictions for the continued dominance of the 50-seat jet market with concessions that scope-clause changes and upward capacity growth will continue to strengthen the market for 70- and 90-seat jets–the sector dominated by General Electric.
