feature The market for experimental, amateur-built aircraft is one of the few bright spots in general aviation these days, but also is one the traditional avionics shops may have avoided. We asked one shop owner how he and his staff do it and learned how they embraced the experimental market with options and advice. GROWING YOUR MARKET Amateur-Built Installations STORY BY JOSEPH E. (JEB) BURNSIDE A lthough many yardsticks measuring the U.S. economy’s overall performance continue indicating recovery from the recession that began in December 2007 and officially ended in mid2009, weak growth in jobs and the gross domestic product confirm anemic progress. And as anyone trying to make a living in general aviation during the past 10 years or so knows, things haven’t returned to “normal.” Despite the industry’s flat growth rate, they also know boom-and-bust business cycles can be a feature, not a bug. All it takes is to identify and meet the needs of some underserved market. So how flat is the GA market? And where can the avionics shop with some excess capacity look to expand? For some perspectives on these and other questions, it helps to have data. 58 avionics news • july 2013