Posted on May 19th, 2011
The market for business aviation in Europe is not rebounding as quickly as those in other parts of the world, and improvement will continue to be slow, according to analyst Brian Foley of Sparta, N.J.-based Brian Foley Associates. Conspiring to limit European demand for new business aircraft are high fuel prices, user fees, carbon taxes, airspace issues, new regulations and airport slot restrictions. “When you factor in sustained economic weakness, a near-term robust market outlook just isn’t a reasonable expectation,” Foley concluded. However, the region will account for approximately 20 percent of worldwide deliveries over the next decade. First-time aircraft buyers, he predicts, will come from Eastern Europe, while Western Europeans will be buying replacement aircraft. The result of the recession and the implementation of the emissions trading scheme next year will be a greater demand for smaller aircraft, as buyers opt for midsize-cabin aircraft rather than large-cabin aircraft. Foley concluded, “[Europeans will] buy the business tool they need as opposed to the more capable jet they might want, and be content to make that extra fuel stop once or twice a year, if it means saving money.”
Tags: business aviation, business jet market recovery, Europe jet sales
