ightglobal.com 22–28 May 2018 | Flight International | 31
BUSINESS AVIATION
European marketDassault Aviation❯❯Richard Aboulafia, aerospace analyst at the
Teal Group, describes European buyers as
“value shoppers”. He says they have “little
problem buying used aircraft, and therefore
may act as canaries in the coal mine in
reverse”. Now that this market has “passed
the bottom, in terms of pricing”, he says,
“demand is starting to shift to new aircraft”.
His view is supported by European Busi-
ness Aviation Association (EBAA) chair Juer-
gen Wiese, who pitches the inventory of used
aircraft for sale at a “healthy” level of around
10% of the global fleet, helping to “firm up”
prices and stimulate demand for new models.
“People ask me if the industry is over the
hump, and I say: ‘I think it is’,” says Wiese,
who also heads BMW’s corporate flight de-
partment. “We are certainly in a sweet spot
now. The economy is doing well, and there is
a good balance [in the used aircraft sector] of
supply and demand.”
FLYING SOARS
Aerospace analyst Rolland Vincent agrees.
He describes the market as “bullish”, and
notes that relative to the rate of economic
growth over the past decade, Europe’s
business jet fleet has performed well. “Just
imagine the fleet growth we might see if
Europe can sustain the current GDP growth
momentum,” he says.
According to EU statistical office Eurostat,
during 2017 GDP rose by 2.3% in the euro
area, compared with 1.8% in 2016. The 28 EU
member states registered growth of 2.4% in
2017, versus 2% in the previous year.
While aircraft sales are on the rise, so too is
flying activity; European travellers are turning
to business aircraft in increasing numbers to
meet their transport needs. “There has been
16 months of sustained growth in charter
sales and movements across Europe’s air-
ports,” says Wiese. “It’s been over 10 years
since such a long spell of uninterrupted
growth was recorded.”
Adam Twidell, chief executive of Private-
Fly, one of the continent’s largest and oldest
online charter platforms, believes a range of
innovative, affordable programmes are help-
ing to sustain this growth.
Programmes such as members-only ven-
ture Surf Air and scheduled business jet
shuttle JetSmarter are lowering the bar to
entry and encouraging a new generation of
European travellers to sample private avia-
tion: “The charter industry is benefiting from
their high-profile, multimillion-dollar mar-
keting campaigns. Once people have
experienced the convenience and flexibility
of flying by private jet – compared with the
headache of travelling on a commercial
airline – they don’t look back.”And, says Twidell, Europe’s new wave of
high-tech, user-friendly booking platforms
such as Stratajet are attracting a younger,
“digitally literate clientele who want the
power to access various services at the touch
of a button – from taxis through to Uber to
seats on a private jet”.
PrivateFly figures support this assessment,
showing a fall in the average age of the typical
European business aircraft user, from 41 years
in 2016, to 38 today. “As millennials continue
to enter the workforce, this younger genera-
tion will become the next private jet audience- demanding more choice, customisation and
personalisation,” says Twidell.
Bombardier is upbeat about Europe’s busi-
ness aviation market – the Canadian airfram-
er’s largest territory outside North America,
with a 25% share of its annual deliveries.
“The key drivers – economic health, strong
aircraft activity, and a low used aircraft inven-
tory – are boosting buyer confidence, per-
suading previously indecisive consumers to
come off the fence, and helping to expand our
05001,0001,5002,0002,5003,0002007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Source: Flight Fleets Analyzer (April 2018)Jets TurbopropsEuropean business jet and turboprop fleet growth 2007-2017Data for business/corporate/executive, air taxi/air charter and VIP/head of state/government-operated aircraft0501001502002503003502007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
Source: Flight Fleets Analyzer (April 2018)Jets TurbopropsEuropean business jet and turboprop deliveries 2007-2017Data for business/corporate/executive, air taxi/air charter and VIP/head of state/government-operated aircraftDassault recently launched the wide-cabin
Falcon 6X, due to enter service around 2023
“There is a good balance
[in the used aircraft sector]
of supply and demand”
Juergen Wiese
Chair, European Business Aviation Association