Shipment figures show No GA Recovery

The 2016 shipment figures released by the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) show that a much-awaited recovery for the GA aeroplane sector has not happened.

The 2262 aeroplanes delivered to customers in the 2016 calendar year is five units down on 2015, meaning effectively there is no change in market demand.

General aviation suffered greatly during the global financial crisis, and appeared to start recovering in 2014, when shipments spiked at 2454, but that was followed with a sharp decline in 2015, indicating the sector was still under pressure.

Total aeroplane billings in 2016 amounted to over $US 20.7 billion, which is only 1% down on last year, but a far cry from the $US 24.5 billion of 2014.

"The 2016 year-end results were disappointing overall, although we did see some blue sky in the turbo-prop sector,” said GAMA president and CEO Pete Bunce. “As we look toward 2017 and beyond, we are optimistic about the future and encouraged by the number of companies investing in innovative research and development programs and planning to bring new products to market."

Small Four-seaters

Despite a 30% drop, Cessna's Skyhawk SP continued to lead the category with more than double the sales of the second-placed Diamond DA40. Piper's Archer III also performed well with a 68% leap in sales. The result boosted Piper's sales by 26% or $US 32 million more than last year.

Large Four-seaters

The Cessna C182T Skylane goes from strength to strength after it was reintroduced to the range in 2015. With 50 shipments for the year, it's up 52% over 2015. However, the SR22/T range continues to dominate with 152 aircraft sold, despite that being a significant 44% down on the 270 delivered for 2015. The Cessna TTx and Piper M350/Matrix also showed declines of around 30% each.

Twins

Diamond's DA62 started to make its presence felt in 2016, with 30 airframes delivered to customers. That is only four aircraft short of the market leader, its sister ship the DA42. Splitting the two is the Tecnam P2006T with 32 aircraft, an increase of 52%. It can only be a matter of months before the DA62 becomes the best-selling piston twin on the market.

SETPs

The single engine turbo-prop market recorded a 6% increase in shipments for the year, with the Pilatus PC-12 wresting the lead from Cessna's Caravan range. Quest's Kodiak 100 also performed well with a 13% increase in sales, and Piper's Meridian series recorded a 26% jump as well.

Personal Jets

Embraer's Phenom 100 and 300 held their market lead in small jets in 2016, with the 300 out-selling the 100 by over six to one. Total shipments, however, were down by 11%. The big mover in the category was the Honda HA420, which recorded a healthy 23 aircraft delivered, in what was its first full year on the market. The last quarter of 2016 marked the debut of the Cirrus SF50 vision in the charts, with three aircraft reported shipped. As the type didn't get its FAA certification until 31 October 2016, we can expect a larger splash from the SF50 in 2017.

Piston Utilities

Cessna's T206H Skylane is almost in a category of its own, with the only real challenger being the Airvan 8 from Mahindra/GippsAero. The Cessna dominated shipments in 2016, logging 36 deliveries against the 14 of the Australian-built Airvan. However, year-on-year, the T206H declined by 29% and the Airvan 8 declined by 36%.

Major Shipments