Stans, Switzerland-based Pilatus Aircraft exceeded its targets for 2017, showing strong financial results and achieving FAA and EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency) certification for its highly anticipated PC-24 Super Versatile Jet. The first PC-24 was delivered in December to the Portsmouth, New Hampshire-based fractional ownership company PlaneSense. In addition to bringing its first business jet to market, Pilatus delivered 115 airplanes last year, collected $986 million in sales and reached the largest workforce in the company’s nearly eight-decade history.
The breakdown of civilian versus non-civilian aircraft Pilatus produced is nearly half and half, with the government having a slight advantage with 54 percent of the total revenues.
Pilatus delivered 85 PC-12 NGs last year, proving that the market for the company’s versatile single-engine turboprop remains strong. The number was a slight drop from the 91 PC-12s delivered in 2016 as the company focused on expansion and modernization of its headquarters in Stans to accommodate the ramp up in production for the PC-24.
With an order book of $2.165 billion, Pilatus appears to have a bright future ahead. The PC-24 order book was filled within days of it opening four years ago at the annual European Business Aviation Convention and Expo in Geneva, when Pilatus took more than 80 orders for the business jet. That order book has remained closed since then, but it is expected to open up soon as deliveries continue.
Pilatus added 152 new jobs in 2017. At the end of the year, Pilatus had 2,113 employees, including 123 paid apprentices. While the total employment numbers include the company’s subsidiaries in Broomsfield, Colorado; Adelaide, Australia; and Chongqing, China, 94 percent of the workforce is based in Switzerland.
