A recent International Aircraft Dealers Association (IADA) webinar poll showed consistent optimism for a recovery in the preowned business aircraft market following the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. In the poll conducted during the organization's state of the industry webinar held last week, 66 percent were very optimistic about a preowned market recovery and 58 percent expected a stronger second half of the year. Fifty percent think pricing will adjust by 10 to 15 percent, and 52 percent were slightly optimistic about new aircraft sales.
From March 27 to April 30, IADA dealer members closed 53 aircraft transactions, which the organization said is about half of the normal average for the period. Thirty-one transactions were discontinued during the period but contracts on 58 aircraft were issued. Further, 34 price adjustments were made at just under 10 percent, and IADA dealers made 27 new acquisition agreements.
Asian Sky Group managing director Jeffrey Lowe told webinar participants that he’s optimistic that deals will finally begin to close starting as early as the third quarter, while Guardian Jet co-managing partner Don Dwyer noted high-net-worth clients remain “hunkered down” in their second homes from the pandemic. “The ones I'm talking to are not anxious to travel this year,” Dwyer said. “So they might be anxious to do deals, but they're not anxious to travel.”
Business aviation analyst Brian Foley said on the webinar that he expects a lot of charter clients later this month or early next month to begin “a lot of leisure travel…because they’ve been cooped up for so long. So I think we’ll see a nice little bounce there.” He added that by this time next year, charter activity might return to the level it was at before the pandemic.
Also participating in the webinar was NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen, who told its nearly 400 participants that planning for NBAA-BACE in October in Orlando is moving forward. “We're also watching closely to see what organizations such as Disney are doing in Orlando itself, to try to make sure that we know everything there is to know about trying to keep people safe, what those protocols are, and how we can do them in a manner that is both safe and consistent,” he added.