Aero Asset released the 2020 Heli Market Trends annual report and forecasts bullish preowned twin engine market conditions for 2021.
After four consecutive quarters of decline, the deal pipeline, which tracks the number of preowned twin engine helicopter deals pending at various stages of transaction, rose in the fourth quarter.
“The heated transaction pace observed at the end of 2020, an expanding preowned deal pipeline, and the pandemic vaccine rollout supports the making of a bullish market,” said Aero Asset VP of Market Research, Valerie Pereira.
“Following a heli market roller coaster ride last year, most indicators point to a healthier trend,” Pereira said. As COVID-19 ramped up through the second quarter, preowned twin engine helicopter retail sales volume dropped by half. “While the market went into hypotension, a strong recovery was just around the corner,” she added.
Markets showed incredible resilience in the last half of the year, with retail sales units on par year over year. Overall, 2020 preowned retail sales units rose 10 percent year over year and 2020 saw the most retail transactions of the last four years. Following a sharp rise in the number of units available for sale over the last two quarters of 2020, supply for sale units rose eight percent, year over year.
The overall absorption rate across all models and asset classes remained constant with 20.5 months of supply at 2020 trading levels versus 21 months in 2019.
With the Sikorsky S-92 and Airbus H225 markets both performing strongly, the heavy weight class market saw the biggest rise in transaction volume of all weight classes last year and nearly twice as many retail transactions year over year. Heavies represented 12 percent of all units sold in 2020 and 20 percent of the aggregate transacted value.
The Leonardo AW139 was the best performing medium twin market in 2020, representing 40 percent of all medium unit transactions. Medium twins accounted for 30 percent of all units sold, and nearly 40 percent of the total transaction value for all models and weight classes.
The Bell 429 saw the strongest increase in light twin sales in 2020 and represented 15 percent of all light twin unit sales. The light twin market was stable during 2020, representing 58 percent of all units sold last year.
The Preowned Twin Helicopter Market by the Numbers
There were a total of 143 units sold in 2020, up 10 percent from the previous year. Those retail sales totaled $516 million, an increase of 16 percent from the previous year.
At the end of 2020, there were 245 units for sale worth approximately $941 million, up eight percent from 2019. The absorption rate was down slightly year over year to 1.7 years, and 29 units were deal pending at various stages of transaction in the deal pipeline.
