Story ID: 
Twin-engine Helo Sales Mixed in Fourth Quarter
By: Jerry Siebenmark
Caption: Aero Asset’s quarterly Helicopter Market Trends report said sales were up from the third quarter of 2020 but lower than the fourth quarter of 2019.
Word Count: 179
Sales of preowned twin-engine turbine helicopters improved quarter-over-quarter in the last three months of 2020, though they remained below year-ago levels, according to Aero Asset’s just-released quarterly Helicopter Market Trends report. Thirty-three preowned helicopters totaling $116 million were sold in the quarter, which was a 22 percent increase from the third quarter but 25 percent lower than in the fourth quarter of 2019.

There were 246 units for sale totaling $943 million, which was an 8 percent increase in units and a 17 percent decrease in value versus the year-ago period. The absorption rate increased 44 percent to 1.9 years.

The deal pipeline showed an improvement, increasing 11 percent to 29 units from fourth-quarter 2019. It was the first time in four consecutive quarters that the deal pipeline saw growth, the report noted.

According to Aero Asset, the highest-selling twin-engine helicopters in the quarter were the Airbus EC135/H135, Leonardo A109E Power, and Sikorsky S-76C+/C++, each at five units apiece. The slowest-selling models during this period were the Bell 412 and S-76D, each accounting for one unit sold in the quarter.