The 2022 half year Heli Market Trends report released by Toronto, Canada-based helicopter trading firm Aero Asset has found that pre-owned twin engine helicopter retail sales, and supply for sale, both declined compared to the previous year.

Twin engine retail sales volume dropped to 73 units in the first six months of 2022, down 17 per cent compared to the same period in 2021. Dollar volume jumped 12 per cent to $264 million, despite fewer deals overall. Supply for sale was 30 per cent lower than the same period the year prior.

“The absorption rate improved slightly to 12 months year-over-year and remained stable compared to the previous semester,” says vice president of market research Valerie Pereira. “The number of deals pending at various stages of transaction increased 20 per cent in the second quarter of 2022 compared to the second quarter of 2021.”

Supply for sale continued to decrease in all asset classes through 2022. Light and medium twin engine retail sales volume decreased nearly 20 per cent year-over-year, while heavy helicopter retail sales volume increased over the same period.

The best performing pre-owned twin engine market in the first half of 2022 was the Airbus EC/H145, followed by the Leonardo AW139 and the Airbus EC/H135. Two twin engine models, namely the the S-76D and AW169, saw no pre-owned retail sales over the first six months of 2022.

North American and European sales volume accounted for 75 per cent of total transactions in the first half of 2022. Europe was the only region with a positive trend in transaction volume. Year-over-year sales volume of VIP and utility configurations decreased by 25 per cent while sales of EMS configured twins increased over the same period.

The full Heli Market Trends report includes a conversation with Marcelo Rajchman, CEO of Ecocopter, a multi-mission helicopter operator headquartered in Chile.