JetNet: 2017 a Recovery Year for Pre-owned Bizcraft?

The creeping worldwide recovery has improved prospects for business aicraft sellers, albeit slowly. In its most recent market summary, JetNet analyzed the most recent numbers as “underwhelming,” but expressed hope that 2017 will be the start of a recovery.

Last month, the fleet-for-sale percentages were lower than in December, with business jets down 0.5 percent and turboprops down 0.6 percent. Across all markets, JetNet reported a total of 8,278 full retail sale transactions in 2016, including leases. Business jets accounted for almost 2,500 of those. Business jets and turboprops are also taking less time to sell, nine days less than last year for jets; 22 days less for turboprops. One reason might be that asking prices declined by 7.3 percent, which correlated directly with the 7.3 percent decline in actual selling prices.

The accepted dividing line between a sellers’ or a buyers’ market has traditionally been set at 10 percent of the active fleet. Currently, the number sits at 11 percent; some 2,315 aircraft, edging down from 2,359 (11.5 percent) at the end of 2015. The JetNet report asks, “Will we see a sellers’ market return in 2017? For that to occur, there would need to be a reduction of more than 200 business jets ‘for sale’ or a similar reduction in the number of business jets in operation, which could be obtained by aircraft being retired.” (Courtesy of AIN Online)