Business Jet Usage Projected to Recover to Pre-pandemic Levels by Late 2021: Honeywell Survey

10/8/20

By Maeve Sheehey, NC Biz News

Honeywell International, Inc. released a survey on Tuesday indicating the business jet industry is poised to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on travel by the second half of 2021.

The Charlotte-based multinational conglomerate company’s yearly Global Business Aviation Outlook forecasted business jet deliveries worth up to $235 billion from 2021 to 2030, down 4 percent in deliveries from last year’s 10-year forecast.

The survey also showed that 80 percent of operators said purchase plans have not been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The forecast suggests that short-term reduction in deliveries from the pandemic will not have a lasting effect on the business jet industry, a positive sign for business travel, which has been hit especially hard by restrictions from the pandemic.

“The information we gleaned from operators shows a less than 1% decline in five-year purchase plans, so despite the short-term effects of the pandemic, we don’t expect long-term changes to purchase plans or to the overall health of the business jet market,” Heath Patrick, president of Americas Aftermarket for Honeywell Aerospace, said in a Tuesday press release.

According to the poll, 82 percent of North American respondents expect to use business jets less often in 2020 than last year, with other regions showing similar declines. However, the survey found that business jet usage is expected to rebound to 80 to 85 percent of 2019 levels in the fourth quarter, while fully recovering by the second half of 2021.

The survey also indicated that 2021 business jet deliveries are expected to be up 13 percent from 2020, a year the pandemic has impacted the industry.

While new aircraft acquisition plans in the North America and Asia Pacific regions are flat, operators are replacing aging aircraft in the fleet in Europe. Purchase plans dipped to a five-year low in Latin America, while higher purchase plans were reported in the Middle East and Africa.

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