General aviation manufacturing saw declines in the overall market worldwide as shipments for airplanes are reported down for 2015 over the previous year, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association reported Wednesday (PDF). Airplane shipments declined 4.6 percent, from 2,376 units in 2014 to 2,267 units in 2015. GA airplane billings also are down 4 percent with $20.9 billion reported for 2015 compared to $21.8 billion in 2014. Piston airplane shipments are down for the first time since 2010 with a 6.5 percent drop to 1,056 units reported last year. The rotorcraft sector saw mixed results. GAMA reported that shipments of piston helicopters are up 8.6 percent, from 257 units in 2014 to 279 units in 2015. Meanwhile, turbine helicopter shipments saw an 8.9 percent drop to 675 units in 2015, from 741 units in 2014. Total rotorcraft shipments fell 4.4 percent.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/recent-updates/business-military/gama-report-aircraft-shipments-drop-in-2015