GA shipments down nearly 17 percent

Shipments of new general aviation airplanes manufactured throughout the world totaled 1,766 units in the first nine months of 2002, down 16.6 percent from the same period last year, according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA). Turboprops took the biggest hit: from 284 delivered in the first three quarters of last year to 170 in the same period this year, a decline of 40.1 percent. Business jet deliveries slipped by 12 percent: 565 shipments in the first three quarters last year compared with 497 in the same timeframe this year. Cessna was the only manufacturer that shipped more jets in the first nine months compared with the previous year (223 vs 210).