The General Aviation Manufacturers Association’s (GAMA) board of directors recently approved the addition of three new members.
CiES, which manufactures electronic fuel sensors for aircraft, and FlightAware, a flight tracking data company, were added as members. Lilium, which has developed the world’s first electric vertical take-off and landing jet, was added as an associate member.
Information from GAMA and the Federal Aviation Administration, meanwhile, was used to determine the top states for private aviation.
The top three states, California, Texas, and Florida have more private aircraft than the other 47 states combined.
“When you compare the states’ activity, do so in the context of population,” Jens Hennig, GAMA’s vice president of operations, said.
Other factors include fair weather and the number of airports.
California ranks No. 1 for population with 12 percent of the nation’s residents. It also is home to 10 percent of the private-aviation fleet. Californians own 20,972 aircraft and flew 2.4 million miles. There are 257 airstrips in the state.
Florida ranks No. 1 for weather and has 6.4 percent of the nation’s population and 6.9 percent of the private aircraft. Floridians own 14,543 aircraft and flew 2.03 million miles. There are 127 airstrips in the state.