Insight | Business Aviation: 2019 End of Year Review
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The final year of the 21st Century’s second decade was another significant one for the business aviation sector. Despite some turbulence over the last 12 months, optimism is still dominant as we reach the year’s end.
In the year that Inmarsat celebrated its 40th anniversary, a lot has happened. We launched an upgraded package for our Jet ConneX inflight broadband and crossed 600 installations for the service too.
So what were the big industry stories of 2019? What challenges were overcome? And what does the future hold?
Here’s how the year unfolded…
The year begins in encouraging fashion. The final (Q4) JETNET iQ survey of 2018 shows that optimism outnumbered pessimism among respondents by an impressive factor of 3.8 to 1.
“This continues the rather upbeat outlook that has characterised the market,” the survey concludes. “No more so is this true than in Europe and North America over the last four quarters.”
Private jet broker company PrivateFly lists its predictions for the year… Green initiatives, digital transformation and industry consolidation figure highly.
Speaking at March 2019’s NBAA Business Aircraft Finance, Registration and Legal Conference, JetNet iQ managing director Rolland Vincent said that although he expected new business jet deliveries to rise in 2019, this would be offset by “sluggish” sales as the world’s economic uncertainty takes hold.
According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) latest monthly Business Jet Report (April 2019) overall operations for 2018 were at their highest since 2007’s pre-crash high. Looking back on the previous 12 months, the business aviation market research, strategy and forecasting company, JetNet iQ, said: “Industry book-to-bill performance was the strongest in 10 years, with most OEMs posting net new orders that matched or even somewhat exceeded factory shipments.”
VistaJet launches a pet travel scheme. VistaPet – see what they did there? – comes in response to an increasing number of animals flying in bizav.
May is all about the great and the good of the bizav community turning up at this year’s European Business Aviation Convention and Exhibition (EBACE) in Geneva.
Speaking at the event, the head of the organisation delivering air traffic management across the European continent – Eurocontrol – says European business aviation faces airspace capacity challenges.
Inmarsat plays an active role at the convention….
Honeywell announces it is launching the first-ever “pay as you go” plan for the Jet ConneX inflight broadband service…
And it’s good news for data-hungry business aviation leaders, as Inmarsat launches a new upgrade on its Jet ConneX package. JX Pro offers unlimited data usage and 33% higher speeds compared to Jet ConneX’s previous fastest plan.
Inmarsat end the show celebrating 500 installations of Jet ConneX.
EBAA publishes its roadmap for European Business Aviation.
And a VIP private jet flight attendant shares her colourful tales…
Aviation International News publishes its latest round-up of the best Fixed Base Operators (FBOs) in business aviation.
Bombardier’s new flagship Global 7500 – described as the industry’s first true, four-cabin-zone business jet, makes its bow at the Paris Air Show.
New EU-wide drone rules are published. The Executive Director of the European Aviation Safety Agency, Patrick Ky, says the directives will “help foster investment, innovation and growth in this promising sector”.
Leading business jet manufacturer Gulfstream hits the 300 installation mark for Jet ConneX.
Great news for the sector as Aviation International News reports that the business aviation communities in the US and China remain in dialogue despite the trade tensions between the two countries.
Business aviation analyst Jefferies points to an 8% rise in business jet deliveries for 2019. It says the arrival of Gulfstream’s G500 and G600 and Bombardier’s Global 7500 is driving the year-on-year growth.
It’s good news for new jet sales as the General Aviation Manufacturers Association announce a rise of 12.5% for the first half of 2019.
At the Digital European Sky Conference, the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA) and 20 EU aviation stakeholders sign the joint declaration on the Future of the European Sky, renewing its commitment to the Single European Sky and improving the European airspace.
Satcom Direct retains first place in the AIN Product Support Survey Cabin Electronics category for the fifth year.
Want to take an ‘ultra-luxe’ tour around the world in a private jet? That’ll be $100,000 please…
On eve of NBAA, Honeywell forecasts 7,600 new Business Jet deliveries over the next decade – these deliveries are valued at $248 billion.
At NBAA, magic is in the air…
NBA legend Magic Johnson delivers the opening keynote address…
Magic Johnson at NBAA 2019
JetConneX is put through its paces by a group of journalists. The results are impressive!
Inmarsat announces the 600th installation of Jet ConneX.
Jet ConneX remains the gold standard in bizav.
Experts at NBAA agree that innovation is key for the sector…
NBAA reflect upon another successful show.
VistaJet announces it will introduce the first fleet of Bombardier Global 7500 aircraft, entering service from January 2020.
The business jet market is forecast to be worth $36.4bn by 2030 according to analysts at Markets & Markets. That’s an annual 3.6% CAGR over the next 10 years.
Bombardier receives its first shipment of sustainable aviation fuel.
The chairman of the Middle East and North Africa Business Aviation Association, Ali Alnaqbi, predicts a good 2020 for business aviation in the MENA region.
The final AvBuyer’s Business Aviation Market Overview of 2019 produces a ‘divergent’ end of year report.
The Secretary General of EBAA, Athar Husain Khan, says bizav has a good story to tell regarding sustainability.
