Press Information

For more information, contact Geoff Hill,
AEA director of communications, at 816-347-8400 or geoffh@aea.net.
For immediate release:
April 27, 2016

AEA Unveils First-Quarter 2016 Avionics Market Report

Total sales exceed $566 million in first three months of 2016

ORLANDO, FLORIDA, April 27, 2016 -- The Aircraft Electronics Association released its first-quarter 2016 Avionics Market Report during the 59th annual AEA International Convention & Trade Show in Kissimmee (Orlando), Florida.

In the first three months of the year, total worldwide business and general aviation avionics sales amounted to $566,098,705.96, or more than $566 million as reported by the participating companies.

First three months of 2016 worldwide business and general aviation avionics sales

Quarter	Retrofit	Forward-fit	Total Sales
1Q 2016	$256,462,826.30	$309,635,879.66	$566,098,705.96

The figure represented a 3.6 percent decrease in sales compared to the first-quarter 2015 amount of $587,100,212.92, or more than $587 million.

First three months of worldwide business and general aviation avionics sales

	2015	2016	% Change
Retrofit	$277,272,571.02	$256,462,826.30	-7.5%
Forward-fit	$309,827,641.90	$309,635,879.66	-0.1%
YTD	$587,100,212.92	$566,098,705.96	-3.6%

The dollar amount reported (using net sales price, not manufacturer's suggested retail price) includes: all business and general aviation aircraft electronic sales -- including all component and accessories in cockpit/cabin/software upgrades/portables/certified and noncertified aircraft electronics; all hardware (tip to tail); batteries; and chargeable product upgrades from the participating manufacturers. The amount does not include repairs and overhauls, extended warranty or subscription services. 

Of the more than $566 million in first-quarter 2016 sales, 54.7 percent came from forward-fit (avionics equipment installed by airframe manufacturers during original production) sales.  

By contrast, the retrofit (avionics equipment installed after original production) market amounted to 45.3 percent of first-quarter sales.

According to the companies that separated their total sales figures between North America (U.S. and Canada) and other international markets, 64.9 percent of the first-quarter sales volume occurred in North America (U.S. and Canada), while 35.1 percent took place in other international markets.

2016 Percentage of Total Sales by Market

Quarter	Retrofit	Forward-fit
1Q 2016	45.3%	54.7%

2016 Percentage of Total Sales Worldwide

Quarter	U.S./Canada	Other International
1Q 2016	64.9%	35.1%

"It's disappointing that total worldwide sales are off to a slower start compared to the first three months a year ago," said AEA President Paula Derks. "Sales in the forward-fit market were nearly identical to last year, so the overall decline was mostly felt in the retrofit market. With more than 30 new avionics products and services introduced to the market this week at the AEA Convention, industry will hopefully see improved sales figures later this year." 

More information about the AEA Avionics Market Report is available online at www.aea.net/marketreport. 

History and Background Information:
The AEA first introduced its Avionics Market Report March 26, 2013, during the 56th annual AEA International Convention & Trade Show in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Prior to 2012, there never had been an effort to capture the true dollar size of the business and general aviation avionics market. The concept to produce the AEA Avionics Market Report began in April 2012, when the AEA formed an ad hoc committee comprised of representatives of avionics manufacturers to create a tool for strategic planning and examining market share. 

"This report provides valuable information to promote the business and general aviation avionics industry to investors and inform elected officials of its global economic value," Derks said when the report was first introduced.

To ensure confidentiality, the participating manufacturing companies submit their sales figures to an independent third-party firm retained to produce the AEA Avionics Market Report. The companies currently participating in the report include:

• Alto Aviation
• Anodyne Electronics Manufacturing Corp.
• Appareo Systems
• Aspen Avionics
• BendixKing
• Cool City Avionics
• FreeFlight Systems
• Garmin
• Genesys Aerosystems
• Gogo Business Aviation
• Honeywell Business & General Aviation
• Jupiter Avionics
• Latitude Technologies
• L-3 Aviation Products
• Mid-Continent Instruments and Avionics
• PS Engineering
• Rockwell Collins
• Sandia Aerospace
• Shadin Avionics
• Trig Avionics
• Universal Avionics Systems Corp. 

The number of companies that participate in the AEA Avionics Market Report may change on a quarterly and/or annual basis. This may occur due to mergers and acquisitions during the year along with new companies participating in the reporting process. Any comparative analysis of the data should take this variance into consideration.

All dollar amounts noted are U.S. dollars. The AEA Avionics Market Report should not be considered a predictive indicator of future industry sales activity. The circumstances discussed in the report may not occur in future time periods, and actual results could differ materially as a result of known and unknown risk factors and uncertainties affecting the AEA Avionics Market Report and the companies that participate in the report. No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made, and the Aircraft Electronics Association, along with the participating companies in the AEA Avionics Market Report, undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

 

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Founded in 1957, the Aircraft Electronics Association represents nearly 1,300 member companies in more than 40 countries, including approved maintenance organizations specializing in maintenance, repair and installation of aircraft electronics systems in general aviation aircraft. The AEA membership also includes manufacturers of aircraft electronics equipment, instrument repair facilities, instrument manufacturers, airframe manufacturers, test equipment manufacturers, major distributors, engineers and educational institutions.