Report: Business jet deliveries see 6.5 percent gain in 2014

The general aviation industry, including Wichita’s Bombardier Learjet and Textron Aviation, delivered more business jets in 2014, according to a General Aviation Manufacturers Association’s report released Wednesday.

GAMA’s General Aviation Shipment Report said worldwide business jet deliveries increased 6.5 percent. For Wichita’s business jet makers, year-over-year deliveries rose by double-digit percentages.

Learjet delivered 34 jets in 2014, a 17 percent increase from 29 deliveries in 2013, the report said.

In the same period, Textron Aviation’s Cessna Aircraft Co. delivered 159 business jets, compared with 139 the year before, a 14 percent increase.

The gain in business jets largely comes from the light and midsize parts of the market, which is finally showing signs of recovery, GAMA president Pete Bunce said in an interview with The Eagle.

“That is a good bellwether for growth in that segment,” he said.

Piston-engine aircraft deliveries also were higher in 2014, increasing 9.6 percent worldwide.

Cessna delivered 155 piston aircraft last year, compared with 122 in 2013.

Textron Aviation’s other subsidiary, Beechcraft, delivered 72 piston airplanes, compared with 70 a year earlier.

The only category of fixed-wing aircraft deliveries that fell year-over-year was turboprops, which the GAMA report said was down 6.5 percent to 603 deliveries.

Cessna delivered 94 turboprops in 2014, compared with 105 in 2013. Beechcraft delivered 127 turboprops in 2014, compared with 135 the year before.

Bunce said the decline in turboprop deliveries was due in part to “some cooling off in the ag business” and an overseas turboprop airplane manufacturer that moved its operations last year, which temporarily affected its production.

Two major ag-related turboprop makers, Thrush Aircraft and Air Tractor, reported year-over-year aircraft delivery declines of 29 percent and 16 percent, respectively, which Bunce said contributed to lower turboprop deliveries.

The contrasting numbers between higher piston aircraft and business jet deliveries, and lower turboprop and helicopter deliveries – down 24.7 percent from 2013 – presents “very mixed results across the board,” Bunce said.

“We’re not where we want to be, no question,” he said.

Among business jet deliveries by Wichita companies, Learjet‘s deliveries in 2014 were led by its Learjet 70/75 aircraft. It delivered 33 Learjet 70/75 aircraft, and one Learjet 60 XR.

Business jet deliveries at Cessna were highest among its Citation M2 light business jets, of which 46 were delivered last year.

A Cessna spokeswoman said Wednesday that 2014 was the first full year of deliveries for the M2, which is assembled at the company’s plant in Independence. She said 2014 also was the first, full year of deliveries for its mid-size Citation Sovereign-Plus, of which 28 were delivered in 2014. The Sovereign-Plus and the Citation CJ4 had the same number of deliveries and accounted for Cessna’s second-highest number of deliveries among its Citation business jets in 2014.

Last year also was the first year of deliveries for the Citation CJ3-Plus light jet, and Citation X-Plus, a super mid-size jet that is Cessna’s largest and longest-range Citation model. Cessna delivered 10 CJ3-Pluses and nine Citation X-Pluses in 2014.

This story was originally published February 11, 2015 at 11:32 AM with the headline "Report: Business jet deliveries see 6.5 percent gain in 2014."