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Aircraft and Parts (AIR)OverviewReturn to top2008* 2009* 2010*Total Market Size 21,980 22,840 23,290Total Local Production 37,330 38,070 38,830Total Exports 31,360 31,980 32,620Total Imports 16,010 16,750 17,080Imports from the U.S. 5,490 5,860 5,980Euro exchange rate: USD 1.00 Euro 0.7 Euro 0.7 Euro 0.7*(Figures in USD millions)Sources: GIFAS, USDoC, French Customs. Note: French Customs figures are quoted in CIF (HS 8802 +8803), USDoc figures are quoted in FAS. * indicates unofficial estimates based on various industrysources. Year to year figures are adjusted for currency fluctuations.Reported (non-consolidated) revenue for the French civil aerospace industry in 2008increased approximately 9 percent over 2007 to €26.77 billion (GIFAS annual report2009). However, the published figures, which are released in the summer, are notnecessarily consistent with the current economic situation, whose repercussions werenot keenly felt in this sector until the 4 th quarter of 2008.The timing of the economic crisis, financing conditions and the drop in oil prices allowedthe industry to hold its own in 2008 and go into 2009 in better shape than other industrialsectors. In fact, 2009 was a year of record aircraft deliveries and lower than usual butstable orders for Airbus, as replacement demand remained high. This was not the casefor the business aircraft sector, which was harder hit and which doesn’t expect demandto begin recovering until 2011 in Europe and the U.S. But even in this sector, poor U.S.and European sales were offset for French manufacturer Dassault Falcon by strongersales in the Middle East, Asia and South America. Over the next 2 years, overallturnover is expected to remain stable.France’s aerospace industry manufacturers derive over 70 percent of their revenuesfrom civilian sector programs, the majority of which are destined for export. This largeexport market is due to the sustained interest in Dassault Falcon Jet, Eurocopter andAirbus aircraft, all of which have products that now successfully have captured globalmarket share. Over 84 percent of French civil aerospace production was exported in2008.Six manufacturers account for the majority of the French market: Airbus (largecommercial aircraft), Eurocopter (light-to-heavy helicopters), Dassault Falcon Jet (highendbusiness jets), ATR (passenger and cargo turboprop aircraft for regional transport),Socata (light aircraft and business turboprops), and Reims Aviation Industries (lightaircraft). With the exception of Reims Aviation, these manufacturers are owned in part orentirely by the same parent company, EADS (European Aerospace Defense & Space).Created in 2000, this consortium dominates the civil aviation market.2/18/2010 Country Commercial Guide for France 42INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT, U.S. & FOREIGN COMMERCIAL SERVICEAND U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, © 2010. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES.