NBAA leans into business aviation intelligence

Dan Hubbard, NBA's interim chief operating officer, and the association's day-to-day lead while president and CEO Ed Bolen takes a leave of absence for cancer treatment, said the joint venture will combine RVA's proprietary member survey data and insights with NBAA's perspective on the business aviation industry and policy environment to deliver exclusive, actionable insights to association members at a time of rapid industry evolution.

The market intelligence, designed for aircraft owners, operators, and the businesses that serve them, will be updated each quarter to provide a recurring pulse on business aviation, rather than offer a static snapshot of the market.

The intelligence products will include a quarterly report powered by member surveys and insights; an annual report providing a comprehensive view of the economic, industry, market, and policy forces shaping business aviation; and industry intelligence events that will build on the RVA Summit, which will take place in Washington, D.C., February 15 and 16, and bring together leading owners, operators, financiers, and industry experts in business aviation for a day and a half of high-level discussions, insights, and connections.

Rollie Vincent, founder, co-owner, and president of RVA, offered a preview of the types of insights members can expect with their subscription to the service. He said the performance of business aviation aircraft manufacturers is "very strong, and that does not seem to be ebbing at all. We have a two-year backlog, over $67 billion sitting in backlog and continuing ordering with no clear signal of any change.

"When change is coming to the market, we look at the pre-owned market," he continued. "We're seeing very strong sales activity in pre-owned, up around 12 percent year over year. Inventory for sale is usually in the six- to 10-percent range and right now with very light jets we're seeing 16-percent availability. That's a signal to watch; that may be a softening signal at the lower end of the market."

RVA also routinely asks questions to determine the mood of the market, and develops trends based on responses over time. Vincent said while owners and operators are bullish on the current and future direction of the business aviation market, there are clear concerns about the impacts of economic uncertainty and inflation. He said that higher fuel prices have had some dampening impact on flight activity, and owners and operators are signaling that uncertainty and price/cost inflation in the medium term could be major disruptors that constrain demand. "Inflation is a problem," said Vincent. "Even though people have means in our industry, we're seeing it's impacting flight operations already, and certainly the outlook for the future."

"NBAA is delighted to partner with RVA on a unique service that will combine members' real-world perspective with best-in-class market intelligence," said Hubbard. "This analysis will inform their understanding of the evolving business aviation landscape and empower their decision-making and growth."

Subscription pricing has not been finalized, but NBAA and RVA plan to discuss the partnership during NBAA's annual convention in Las Vegas, and will update members in early 2027.