DALLAS — Battered by recession and bad publicity, sales of general-aviation aircraft favored by businesses fell last year for the first time in five years. The General Aviation Manufacturers Association, a trade group for the industry, said Tuesday that shipments fell 7.1 percent last year.
The decline was concentrated in the least-expensive planes, piston-driven models, but is spreading to more costly turboprops and jets, said an official of the group.
The trade group said shipments declined to 3,969 last year from 4,272 in 2007. But manufacturers’ billings rose 13.4 percent, to $24.8 billion, because of a backlog of orders.
The group did not offer a forecast for 2009 sales, but officials said shipments of turboprops and jets — with a longer lead time between orders and deliveries — usually decline a year to 18 months after the start of a recession. The Associated Press
