The general aviation industry delivered 995 airplanes at a value of $9 billion during the first half of 2017, according to recently-published second quarter general aviation airplane shipment and billings data from the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA).
Piston airplanes were among industry segments that saw the greatest increase compared to the same period in 2016, which led the industry in unit improvement by a 5.6 percent increase. Business jet shipments came in second, increasing by three units to a total of 295 deliveries over the first six months of 2017.
While piston airplanes and business jets increased through the quarter, the turboprop segment decreased by 0.9 percent. More seriously, total airplane billings also decreased by a total of 3.4 percent, dropping from $9.4 billion in 2016 to $9.0 billion this year.
“Results for the second quarter of this year are very much like the first – mixed, with some bright spots,” GAMA President and CEO Pete Bruce said. “We hope rule rewrites in the U.S. and Europe, reorganization of the FAA certification directorate, and ongoing certification and regulatory reform efforts in Congress, including fuller utilization of the delegation authorization, will spur higher numbers in future quarters this year and the next.”