Aircraft Retailers: Now’s Your Chance to Dance and Earn Some Money, Honey

It looks like the 2016 presidential election will prove to be a boon for the general aviation industry. It seems that all financial analysts, Flying Magazine, Private Pilot Magazine, EAA President, AOPA, AvWeb and Aviation Week and Space Technology agree: 2017 is the year that will break records and set a good pace for years to come. What does this mean for those of us in the general aviation services sector? It means ‘clear skies ahead’ and profit too.

Apparently, unlike the Obama Administration, the Trump Administration does not see aircraft owners as part of the Evil One Percenters, but instead sees them as winners. This is a good thing. New orders for Business Jet aircraft are already hitting record levels simply in anticipation of change under new management. Financing for new aircraft is also following suit, while smaller companies are investing in Air-Taxi Memberships, shared flights and fractional aircraft plans. All of this makes things look pretty good for those of us who would like to get back to making money servicing all these new planes.

Aircraft International News had a special report in December 2016 on the state of corporate aircraft financing that said;

“U.S. business jet fleet cycles this year are expected to approach levels last seen in 2003, according to statistics provided by industry analyst JetNet. At the time, there were 9,500 business jets in service in the US – there are 12,500 today.”

In fact, this trend is increasing rapidly. Ok, so what does this mean for aircraft retailers? Well, it’s a known fact that when aircraft owners buy new aircraft, they are 50% more likely to put those aircraft on a cleaning regiment or regular customer program, which includes weekly washes and monthly details. It also means more use of current and existing aircraft, which equates to aircraft getting dirty in shorter time intervals. It also means that used aircraft will be sold again as new aircraft start to decline. People who sell used planes make great detailed customers.

Overall, 2017 and 2018 look to be on track to break records in the general aviation sector and that’s just great news for all of us aeronautical service industry folks who would also like to have a couple of solid years to come. beat Records. If you already own an aircraft detailing business, it’s time to expand. If you want to start a new aircraft cleaning company, you have just been cleared to take off.