General aviation industry decline in the 1980s and 1990s Manufacturing downturn General aviation aircraft production in the U.S. -- following its 30-year peak in the late 1970s—dropped sharply over the next few years to a fraction of its original volume—from approximately 18,000 units in
1978, to 4,000 units in
1986, At the time, industry analysts estimated that the U.S. decline in general aviation aircraft manufacturing eliminated somewhere between 28,000 and 100,000 jobs—as unit production dropped by 95% between the 1970s peak and the early 1990s—sharply different from other segments of the global aerospace industry, where U.S. market share was still strong. Average cost of manufacturer's liability insurance for each airplane manufactured in the U.S. had risen from approximately $50 per plane in 1962 to $100,000 per plane in 1988, according to a report cited by the
Bureau of Labor Statistics, •
Higher fatality rate (per passenger, per mile traveled) for general aviation aircraft than most other forms of transportation. •
Changes in the legal system including the rise of the rule of
strict liability, increasingly applied by courts nationwide during the 1960s and 1970s, so that aircraft
product liability lawsuits became a rapidly rising area of specialty for the legal profession in the 1980s, with some attorneys successfully specializing in targeting general aviation aircraft manufacturers and insurers. rising insurance rates and restrictions for aircraft manufacturers, owners, operators, and maintenance providers, largely in response to the accident-liability issues; declines in consumer discretionary income; and regulatory restrictions. Also cited by some was an unsustainable surge in student pilots, triggered by the proposed elimination of government-funded private pilot training under the
GI Bill for military veterans—with veterans scrambling to get the training while it was still available. The surge, some analysts have indicated, consumed most of the veterans' demand for flight-training that
would have been spread out over
several years
if there had been no fear of program discontinuance. This surge in student (and subsequently licensed private) pilots also triggered a transient surge in orders for light aircraft—for training and personal use—which also quickly consumed the veteran-related aircraft demand that would normally have been spread out more evenly over several years—creating, instead, a sudden, fleeting "peak" in aircraft purchases in the late 1970s, in place of what might otherwise have been a lower, longer, more-even "plateau" in the data. and 6-seat
Piper PA-32 "Cherokee Six"/"Saratoga".
Beech Aircraft was acquired by
Raytheon Corporation (and renamed
Raytheon Aircraft), which shifted the company's emphasis away from general aviation propeller aircraft, like the
Beech Bonanza and
Beech Baron, and discontinued all other piston-propeller aircraft models (from the 2-seat, single-engine Model 77
Beech Skipper trainer to the 7-seat, twin-engine, pressurized Model 60
Beech Duke), directing company emphasis towards professionally operated corporate turboprops and business jets, and small military and commercial aircraft.
General aviation aircraft shortages As a consequence of these changes, and others, the general aviation industry began to suffer from a shortage of new aircraft, particularly for training, rental and charter use. The three main training planes of the industry in the 1980s, the two-seat
Cessna 152,
Piper Tomahawk, and
Beechcraft Skipper, were all removed from the market in the early-to-mid 1980s, and none of them ever returned.
GARA promoted and opposed During the 1980s and 1990s, under the leadership of Cessna Chairman Russ Meyer and GAMA President Ed Stimpson, the industry pressured Congress, for several years, to enact limits on aircraft manufacturers'
product liability. The proposed legislation became known as the "General Aviation Revitalization Act (GARA). • the
Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association (AOPA), the main U.S. organization for owners and pilots of general aviation aircraft.
Opponents included (chiefly): •
Lawsuit attorneys, represented by the
Association of Trial Lawyers of America (ATLA). The proposed legislation directly threatened their power and wealth, and would create a potentially wide-ranging precedent that could lead to similar legislation affecting lawsuits over other products and issues. • U.S. Representative
Dan Glickman (D-Kansas) from Wichita, "the Air Capital City" the hometown of Cessna, Beech Aircraft/Raytheon Aircraft, and the
Learjet division of Bombardier Aerospace, and many other aviation enterprises. Glickman co-sponsored the legislation with Sen. Kassebaum (above),
Congressional support included: • U.S. Senator
John McCain (R-Arizona), a retired career
Naval aviator, who gave a sponsoring speech in favor of the GARA, Nov.11, 1993 on the floor of the U.S. Senate. • U.S. Senator
Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), who offered a defense to Sen. Metzenbaum's critique, remarks, March 16, 1994 on the floor of the U.S. Senate.
Congressional opposition included: •
Senate Judiciary Committee ==Outcomes==