Aircraft, Marine & Railroad Transportation Equipment Wholesalers NAICS 423860

Jun 30, 2025 - AI in Aircraft Getting Closer to Reality

• Aircraft manufacturers are increasingly incorporating new technology and AI into planes, a fresh approach for a historically cautious industry where safety is paramount. Since 2022 investors have spent $15 billion investing in startups creating Advanced Air Mobility systems (development of electric or hybrid-electric aircraft). Other new technologies include electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles, alternative fuels, AI-copilots, and autonomous flights. These applications are not yet widely-used or scalable, but they represent a trend in which AI is expected to pump about $40 billion into the aviation industry by 2033, per South American technology firm Globant. Today, AI is largely used for personalized pilot training. The industry could soon use AI for such tasks as predictive aircraft maintenance and fuel optimization. Per airline technology provider Sita, AI incorporation could help the industry save $25 billion annually, provided it advances enough to ensure passenger safety and is accepted by the general public.
• The federal government wants to revive the US commercial shipbuilding industry and blunt China’s ocean freight dominance by expanding the number of US-flagged vessels capable of transporting vehicles, food, and fuel during wartime. There are currently less than 200 US commercial vessels available for such operations, and not enough mariners to fully operate them. The US has long outsourced shipbuilding and maintenance to the private sector in other countries, particularly in Europe, and those ships are not controlled by the US but are essentially rented out to carry American goods and be available to the Department of Defense in times of conflict. Trump signed an executive order in early 2025 instructing the government to come up with a plan in seven months to boost domestic shipbuilding and train and hire more mariners. The US hopes to eventually combat China’s control of almost 30% of all current vessels on the ocean.

• Amidst an increase in overall US capital expenditure spending towards the end of 2024, transportation equipment orders fell 7.5% in November, according to the US Department of Commerce. Most of the fall can be attributed to a 45% drop in commercial airliner orders resulting from another chaotic year at Boeing. The company’s aircraft deliveries fell almost a third in 2024 to 348 planes delivered, less than half of what rival Airbus delivered (most of a plane’s purchase price is paid on delivery). It is the fifth straight year of Airbus sales dominance over Boeing, which continues to be hobbled by the fallout from several crises over the past six years: two plane crashes, an in-flight door malfunction, labor strikes and government-mandated production caps conditioned on safety improvements. While Boeing reported 142 aircraft orders in December, it is still lagging behind in deliveries of its current orders.
• As aircraft supply chain problems persist, the average global aircraft fleet age has worsened from 13.6 years in 2023 to 14.8 years in 2024, according to International Air Transport Association (IATA) data reported by Simple Flying. Aging aircraft create a range of problems for airlines including higher maintenance costs and higher fuel costs than newer aircraft. According to IATA Director General Willie Walsh, airlines are getting hit on revenues, costs, and environmental performance. IATA data showed that aircraft deliveries have fallen 30% from 1,813 aircraft in 2018 to an estimated 1,254 in 2024 and 1,802 in 2025. The cumulative backlog has reached a record high of 17,000 aircraft. Companies are looking to lease aircraft to continue to grow and meet passenger demand, causing higher lease rates as competition for capacity expands.