Firefighting Aircraft Market Opportunities and Strategies to 2033

This report describes and explains the firefighting aircraft market and covers 2018-2023, termed the historic period and 2023-2028, 2033F termed the forecast period. The report evaluates the market across each region and for the major economies within each region.

The global firefighting aircraft market reached a value of nearly $8.5 billion in 2023, having grown at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.5% since 2018. The market is expected to grow from $8.5 billion in 2023 to $11.9 billion in 2028 at a rate of 7%. The market is then expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.8% from 2028 and reach $17.4 billion in 2033.

Growth in the historic period resulted from the growing number of fire-born incidents, increased forest management efforts, the rising number of wildfires and strong economic development in emerging markets. Factors that negatively affected growth in the historic period include high firefighting aircraft accident rates and a lack of pilot expertise.

Going forward, the rising government investments for firefighting infrastructure, increasing environmental protection initiatives, rising urbanization and increased fire-related fatalities and casualties will drive the market. Factors that could hinder the growth of the firefighting aircraft market in the future include capacity limitations of aircraft.

The firefighting aircraft market is segmented by type into fixed wing and multi-rotor. The fixed wing market was the largest segment of the firefighting aircraft market segmented by type, accounting for 77.9% or $6.6 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the multi-rotor segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the firefighting aircraft market segmented by type, at a CAGR of 8% during 2023-2028.

The firefighting aircraft market is segmented by tank capacity into less than 10,000 liters, 10,000-30,000 liters and more than 30,000 liters. The less than 10,000 liters market was the largest segment of the firefighting aircraft market segmented by tank capacity, accounting for 62.1% or $5.3 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the less than 10,000 liters segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the firefighting aircraft market segmented by tank capacity, at a CAGR of 7.6% during 2023-2028.

The firefighting aircraft market is segmented by application into firefighting organizations, military and other applications. The firefighting organizations market was the largest segment of the firefighting aircraft market segmented by application, accounting for 71.1% or $6.1 billion of the total in 2023. Going forward, the firefighting organizations segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment in the firefighting aircraft market segmented by application, at a CAGR of 7.7% during 2023-2028.

North America was the largest region in the firefighting aircraft market, accounting for 34.3% or $2.9 billion of the total in 2023. It was followed by Asia-Pacific, Western Europe and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the firefighting aircraft market will be Asia-Pacific and the Middle East, where growth will be at CAGRs of 9.06% and 8.22% respectively. These will be followed by Africa and South America, where the markets are expected to grow at CAGRs of 7.88% and 7.66% respectively.

The global firefighting aircraft market is highly concentrated, with large players operating in the market. The top ten competitors in the market made up to 62.96% of the total market in 2023. Textron, Inc was the largest competitor with a 20.34% share of the market, followed by the Cargolux Airlines International S.A. with 14.10%, Boeing Company with 5.86%, Airbus SE with 5.63%, Embraer S.A. with 4.89%, Lockheed Martin Corporation with 3.82%, Leonardo S.p.A. with 3.71%, Babcock International Group plc with 2.66%, Conair Group Inc. with 1.13% and Air Tractor Inc. with 0.82%.

The top opportunities in the firefighting aircraft market segmented by type will arise in the fixed wing segment, which will gain $2.6 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the firefighting aircraft market segmented by tank capacity will arise in the less than 10,000 liters segment, which will gain $2.3 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The top opportunities in the firefighting aircraft market segmented by application will arise in the firefighting organizations segment, which will gain $2.7 billion of global annual sales by 2028. The firefighting aircraft market size will gain the most in the USA at $716.8 million.

Market-trend-based strategies for firefighting aircraft market include focus on expanding fleets and investing in new technologies to enhance firefighting capabilities, developing innovative solutions, such as high-payload firefighting models, to enhance firefighting capabilities and address challenging scenarios more effectively, securing new contracts to enhance firefighting infrastructure as the demand for efficient aerial firefighting grows, adopting a strategic partnership approach for business expansion in the market and on developing autonomous firefighting helicopters to advance capabilities and enhance firefighting operations.

Player-adopted strategies in the firefighting aircraft market include focus on strengthening business capabilities through strategic partnerships and collaborations, enhancing operational capabilities through launching new business ventures and enhancing business operations through product updates and expansions.

To take advantage of the opportunities, the analyst recommends the firefighting aircraft companies to focus on expanding fleet and technology investment, focus on innovative high-payload firefighting solutions, focus on securing new contracts to enhance capabilities, focus on advancing autonomous firefighting technologies, focus on multi-rotor market segment, expand in emerging markets, continue to focus on developed markets, focus on partnerships for expanding distribution channels for firefighting aircraft, focus on strategic pricing for firefighting aircraft, focus on trade shows and industry events, continue to use B2B promotions and focus on targeting firefighting organizations.