GRAHAM WARWICK / WASHINGTON DC
Raytheon is hardest hit manufacturer, but signs of improvement begin to emerge
US business aircraft manufacturers report the decline in orders stabilised towards the end of 2001, but a recovery is not anticipated before the second half of this year. As a result, orders are set to be flat and deliveries down this year.
Raytheon saw a "mild improvement" in two leading market indicators in December. "Fractional sales increased a bit and the availability of used aircraft stabilised," says chief executive Dan Burnham.
Among US manufacturers, Raytheon Aircraft has been hardest hit because of its older product line. The company delivered 411 aircraft last year, down from 525 in 2000, and is expected to deliver 371 aircraft this year. Orders for Beechjet 400A and Hawker 800XP business jets and King Air twin-turboprops are down substantially. By the end of the third quarter, Raytheon had received orders for 118 units, down by 37 for the same period in 2000. Bookings in the fourth quarter were "about flat year-on-year", the company says.
Raytheon expects bookings to be down "modestly" in the first half relative to the same period last year, and anticipates "some recovery" in Beechjet, Hawker and King Air orders in the second half. Orders should be level for the year.
Cessna delivered a record 313 business jets last year, up from 254 in 2000, but booked net new orders for just 75. The company expects to deliver 300 jets this year, 90% of which have already been sold, as have half of the deliveries planned for 2003, says parent Textron.
Orders were "very soft" in the fourth quarter, but there were signs of increased demand in January. "Sales of new fractional positions have been brisk the last few months and we hope that will convert to new orders," Textron chief financial officer Ted French has told analysts. Small businesses are still under pressure, affecting sales of Cessna's smaller jets, he says, with "two or three" Citation CJs yet to be sold this quarter.
At the high end of the market, Gulfstream booked 21 firm orders in the fourth quarter compared with 25 in the same period a year earlier, comprising five GIV-SPs, nine GVs, three GV-SPs and four G200s. For the full year, the company booked firm orders for 155 aircraft, plus options for 120, says parent company General Dynamics.
Gulfstream delivered 84 green and 98 completed aircraft last year, up from 71 and 70, respectively, in 2000 because of the acquisition of Galaxy Aerospace. The company expects to deliver 93 green aircraft this year, eight fewer than originally planned.
Source: Flight International
