BUSINESS JETS AND TURBOPROPS LEAD A MIXED FIRST HALF

GAMA has published its Second Quarter 2026 General Aviation Aircraft Shipment and Billing Report, comparing the first six months of 2026 against the same period in 2025. Airplane shipments were mixed by category: piston airplanes fell 3.1 percent to 786 units, from 811, while turboprops rose 7.8 percent to 289 units, from 268, and business jets rose 8.2 percent to 383 units, from 354. Total airplane shipments were up 1.7 percent at 1,458 units, from 1,433, and total airplane billings rose 15.5 percent to $14.3 billion, from $12.4 billion.

Helicopter shipments moved in the same direction across both categories: piston helicopters rose 5.8 percent to 110 units, from 104, and turbine helicopters rose 3.3 percent to 309 units, from 299, taking total helicopter shipments to 419 units, up 4.0 percent on 403. Total civil-commercial helicopter billings reached $2.2 billion, up 7.2 percent on $2.0 billion.

The gap between the 1.7 percent rise in total airplane units and the 15.5 percent rise in total airplane billings is largely a function of mix: business jets and turboprops, the higher-value end of the market, both grew close to or above eight percent, while the more numerous but lower-value piston segment contracted. That shift toward higher-value aircraft, rather than a simple increase in volume, is doing most of the work behind this year’s billings growth. GAMA’s complete second-quarter report, including regional and manufacturer-level detail, is available on the association’s website.