Worldwide shipments of business and general aviation aircraft declined across all sectors in the first quarter of 2015, triggered by a decline in the global marketplace.
According to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), deliveries of piston-engined, turboprop and business jets slumped by 15.2% year on year to 441 aircraft, prompting a fall in book value of over 12% to $4.5 billion.
"The first-quarter numbers show that while our industry has been gaining traction over the past few years, we face some renewed headwinds in several regions of the world, including Asia, parts of Europe and Latin America," says GAMA president and chief executive Pete Bunce.
The association, headquartered in Washington, DC, recorded 133 business jet shipments between January and March: 21 fewer than in the first quarter of 2014. All the major airframers apart from Bombardier – which recorded a two aircraft hike – registered a year-on-year decline, according to GAMA.
Continuing decline in demand for agricultural aircraft prompted an 8% reduction in turboprop deliveries to 115 aircraft. Thrush Aircraft, for example, saw deliveries of its S2R series fall year on year from 12 to 4 units, while Air Tractor recorded a drop in shipments of its AT-family from 45 to 39 units during the same period.
Deliveries of single-engined executive types bucked the trend, however, recording a 7.5% gain. Daher and Piper led the charge, handing over an extra six TBM 900s and five Meridian 500s, respectively, compared with the first quarter of 2014.
Source: Flight International
