Shipment Figures point to GA Recovery

General aviation shipment figures released by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) yesterday point to a continuing recovery in the sector from the worst of the pandemic months.

GA shipments for the first quarter of 2022 we up nearly 15% over the same period in 2021, which GAMA president and CEO Pete Bunce attributed to regulatory changes.

"It is reassuring to see aircraft deliveries continue to show strong progress as we emerge from impacts of the pandemic,” Bunce said “It is especially encouraging to see piston airplane deliveries continue their positive trajectory and exceed last year’s numbers as well as the first quarter numbers of 2020 and 2019.

"This report shows increasing light airplane deliveries from a number of companies that have leveraged the new CS/Part 23 airworthiness standards for both new aircraft models and upgrades. The upward trajectory in light airplane segment is attributable to the regulatory reforms undertaken by several regulatory bodies that enable new technology and new aircraft and entrants.

"We are optimistic that further implementation of these standards across global regulators will continue to advance safety while bringing new and exciting aircraft to the GA market.”

The battle for the primary trainer market continued in the January-March quarter this year, with Piper's Pilot 100 and Archer combining to pip the Cessna C172SP for line honours, with Piper shipping 11 100s and 22 Archers compared with 20 Skyhawks. Diamond and Tecnam returned steady figures for the DA40 and P2010 respectively, but the Cirrus SR20 was down 50% over the same period in 2021.

However, Cirrus SR22/T continued its dominance of the high-speed single market to the point that it almost has the segment to itself. Cirrus shipped 60 SR22s compared to only 14 of every other type combined. Beechcraft's iconic Bonanza failed to register a shipment for the fifth quarter in a row, the last delivery occurring in Q4 2020. The C182 Skylane recorded nine shipments for the quarter; a better result than Q1 2021 when none were rolled out.

The twin-engine GA sector bucked the growth trend, remaining flat in Q1 2022. Diamonds continued to dominate, with the seven-seat DA62 (9) and the DA42 four-seater (8) leading the way. No Barons or Senecas were shipped and even the Tecnam P2006T was down 38%.

Daher had a disappointing first quarter with the TBM series down 71% and the Kodiak 100 down 60%. They were unable to share in the overall strong showing from the single-engine turbo-prop segment, which saw the Caravan series up 129% over Q1 2021, the PC-12 up 86% and the M500/600 also returning a better result. Three Epic G1000 GX airframes were delivered, which is only one airframe below the quarterly average since the certified model came on the market last year.

In the single-pilot jet market (where it seems everyone claims victory), the Cirrus SF50 Vision recorded the highest number of shipments at 11, 57% up on last year. Of the twin jets, the Cessna M2 had a rare win over Embraer's Phenom series, which was surprisingly down 40% on Q1 2021 and the HondaJet HA420 was also flat with only four aircraft sent to customers.

Major Aircraft Shipments