Exec jet market recovers after long slump

[DALLAS] Business-jet shipments worldwide rose last year for the first time since 2008 as corporate purchases of larger planes aided an industry that saw deliveries tumble by almost half during the recession.

Manufacturers shipped 678 of the planes, six more than in 2012, the Washington-based General Aviation Manufacturers Association said in a statement on Wednesday. That included a gain of 22 per cent to 249 for the bigger models while mid-size and smaller planes fell 8.3 per cent to 429.

"We're heading in the right direction but we're definitely not out of the woods yet," Pete Bunce, the trade group's president, said in an interview. "If you peel back the onion and parse the numbers a little bit, there are still significant problems in the light-to-mid area."