Despite the increases in business aircraft flight hours over the past year, positive economic indicators from the business community and a strong fourth-quarter showing from aircraft manufacturers, 2010 lived up to its description as a trough year for the general aviation industry, as worldwide shipments of turbine-powered aircraft reached their lowest levels since 2005, according to year-end statistics released on February 22 by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA).
The total number of business jets handed over last year was 763, down more than 12 percent from last year and off nearly 42 percent from the industryπs high-water mark of 1,313 set in 2008. On the turboprop side, the erosion was greater, with 363 aircraft (AIN’s chart below considers only pressurized aircraft) representing a slide of approximately 18 percent from 2009’s output. “The delivery figures are down, but much less than the year before,” noted John Rosanvallon, GAMA’s chairman. “2010 was a year of stabilization for the market.”
