The preowned twin-engine helicopter market showed resilient pricing and steady supply but fewer sales last year, according to rotorcraft sales firm Aero Asset. At the start of Heli-Expo 2024 this week, the Canadian company—which launched in 2019—released its year-end Heli Market Trends Report, focusing on the twin-engine segment.
While the market reached a state of equilibrium in 2022, retail sales in light twins declined by 8 percent last year and the medium twin class decreased by 28 percent. The heavy twin segment, however, saw sales climb by 36 percent year-over-year (YOY), equating to an overall 12 percent decrease in helicopter sales volume, while average transaction price increased by 10 percent year YOY.
“Sales declined in 2023 after an upward trend from 2019 through 2022,” noted Valerie Pereira, the company’s v-p of market research. “The absorption rate increased by two months to 14 months of supply at current trade levels—the first increase in three years.”
Aero Asset also saw a geographic shift in sales. “By no surprise, the North American market continued to lead the pack in transaction volume last year,” Pereira said on Tuesday at Heli-Expo. “However, North America and Europe saw noticeable drops in retail sales volume year-over-year and accounted for half of the total retail sales in 2023, versus three quarters in 2022.”
While the supply in those regions—which represent 64 percent of the world’s total helicopter supply—increased by 20 percent YOY, the supply in the rest of the world decreased.
Each year, the company ranks preowned rotorcraft by model market absorption rates and retail sales to establish a list of the most active models. Last year, the most liquid model was the Bell 429, followed by the Leonardo AW109 Power. The Sikorsky S-92 and Leonardo AW109S/SP tied for third place, with absorption rates under six months of supply at the current transaction volume. The slowest-performing helicopters in the twin-engine market last year were the Sikorsky S-76D and Leonardo AW169.
Pereira explained that several factors could affect the sales activity this year, including continuing supply chain issues, the continuing situations in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the upcoming presidential elections in the U.S. “The next three quarters will be very interesting for us all,” she concluded.