GAMA has released its 3rd quarter aircraft shipment report, and the numbers, as expected, are well below those recorded last year. Through the first three quarters, total aircraft shipments are down 12.6%, with business jets down 26.7% from 2019 levels. Total billings are down 21.7% including electric powered, piston engine, turboprops and business jets.
The table below summarizes the results through the first three quarters of 2020 compared with 2019. The drop in business jet deliveries is the driving force economically in the year to year downturn.
By manufacturer, the drop varied considerably, with Textron suffering the largest drop in business aircraft by 51.2% and Dassault and Pilatus remaining within 10% of their 2019 shipment levels. The following table summarizes deliveries by manufacturer:
Overall, the picture for business aviation is not pretty for 2020, and the downturn is likely to continue as international borders remain closed to travel. Domestic business travel volumes have rebounded on private aircraft, but the demand has not translated to new deliveries of business jets. Traditionally, the 4th quarter is the best quarter for business jets, with many deliveries taking place before year-end for tax purposes. The next quarter will provide us insight as to whether the industry doldrums will soon end or continue into 2021. Unfortunately, our initial market intelligence points to the latter.
