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GA Shipments Plunge By Half In Nine Months

Nov 9, 2009

General aviation shipments were down 46.8 percent and billings have fallen 23.5 percent in the first nine months of the year, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association reported last week. GA plane makers shipped 1,587 aircraft in the first nine months, compared with 2,982 in the first three quarters of 2008. Billings dropped from $17.995 billion in the first nine months of 2008 to $13.771 billion this year, GAMA said.

Piston deliveries have been particularly hard hit, down 58.7 percent this year to 679. This compared with the 1,646 shipped in the first nine months of 2008. Business jet deliveries are down 37.8 percent to 615, and turboprop deliveries have declined 15.89 percent to 293 in the first nine months, GAMA reported. The third quarter declines were not surprising as some of the major manufacturers - including Cessna and Gulfstream - temporarily shut down their factories to adjust for depressed orders and to avoid further layoffs.

READ MORE:    AviationWeek.com

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