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The global auxiliary power unit market is headed toward delivering solutions that will help aircraft become more fuel efficient and involve a lower total cost of ownership. This Frost & Sullivan analysis of the market provides a 10-year forecast from 2020 to 2030. The total market was worth $2.04 billion in 2020 and, considering the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, should see a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 3.6% during that time frame.

The study covers the auxiliary power units used on commercial aircraft. The market segments are linefit, retrofit, and aftermarket. Linefit accounts for 12.1% of the market share and is driven by the delivery of new aircraft to airlines. Demand for retrofit and aftermarket comes from airlines’ need to maintain their existing aircraft. Honeywell and Pratt & Whitney are the 2 leading companies that form a market duopoly. Boeing partnered with Safran in attempt to enter the auxiliary power unit space by creating a new joint venture named Initium, but the COVID-19 pandemic halted their business due to weak demand for new aircraft.

The pandemic has drastically reduced passenger traffic and decreased aircraft utilization; however, regulatory mandates will drive the retrofit market. The demand for new aircraft, which led to peak production levels in 2018 (pre-COVID-19), came from emerging economies, particularly from China. Although it could take until 2024 to return to pre-pandemic levels, China and other Asian countries will remain the largest consumers of new aircraft. The United States and Europe are restructuring their aircraft fleets by replacing older aircraft with more efficient ones. This will help airlines control OPEX and maintenance costs.