AEA Reports Avionics Sales Over $1 Billion for First Half of 2021

According to its second quarter 2021 Avionics Market Report, the Aircraft Electronics Association (AEA) says sales during the first half of 2021 exceeded $1 billion.

While the exact figure of $1,069,737,831 represents a 7.1 percent decrease in total sales compared to the first six months of 2020, during the second quarter months of April, May, and June, sales rose 2.1 percent compared to the same time frame one year ago.

To calculate figures for its report, AEA receives sales data from 22 participating avionics companies. The dollar amount reported—using net sales price, not manufacturer’s suggested retail price—includes all business and general aviation aircraft electronic sales.

Contributing to the data were sales of all components and accessories in:

The amount does not include:

“While it’s encouraging to see a modest increase in sales compared to the second quarter of last year, this report is somewhat mixed as it ended a string of sales increases over the preceding nine months,” said AEA’s president and CEO Mike Adamson.

“The avionics industry is still facing some headwinds with various supply chain issues and global travel restrictions,” he said. “With new products and services entering the market, the resounding success of recent trade shows, and resilient consumers, there are still positive signs for general aviation to continue its climb.”

Of the more than $1 billion in sales during the first half of 2021, 55 percent came from the retrofit market (avionics equipment installed after original production), while forward-fit sales (avionics equipment installed by airframe manufacturers during original production) amounted to 45 percent of sales.

AEA reported that so far in 2021, 75.2 percent of sales came from the U.S. and Canada, with 24.8 percent from other international sales.

The association was founded in 1957 and represents nearly 1,300 member companies in more than 40 countries. AEA first introduced its Avionics Market Report in 2013 during the 56th annual AEA International Convention & Trade Show in Las Vegas.

To ensure confidentiality, the participating manufacturing companies submit their sales figures to an independent third-party firm retained to produce the AEA Avionics Market Report.