Rotorcraft
Forecasts: down cycle likely, but industry will rebound
Engine manufacturers Honeywell and Rolls-Royce expressed tempered optimism about the helicopter marketplace at February’s Heli-Expo, where each released it

Engine manufacturers Honeywell and Rolls-Royce expressed tempered optimism about the helicopter marketplace at February’s Heli-Expo, where each released its annual industry forecast. Both predicted a dip in deliveries and offered caveats reflecting the precarious state of the economy.

Honeywell’s annual market forecast for civil turbine-powered helicopters is still predicting flat to slightly higher deliveries between 2009 and 2013 compared with the previous five-year period, but there are potential problems. Honeywell expects 2009 to be at or near 2008 levels before a market decline in 2010, but the steepness of the drop and how long it will last are largely unknown “due to the uncertainty of the global economy,” the company said. The trough could last until 2012 and perhaps longer.

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