Fuel Tank Inerting Systems Market - Forecast(2024 - 2030)

Overview

Fuel Tank Inerting Systems (FTIS) Market value is $7.92 billion in 2018 and expected to grow at a CAGR of 6.78% during forecast period 2020-2025. The growing pressure to comply with a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) fuel tank system safety mandate and other regulations, coupled with numerous reliability issues pertaining to first-generation systems introduced to meet new requirements is creating growth opportunities for fuel tank inerting systems industry.  Additionally, aircraft manufacturers are focusing on the removal of all potential sources of ignition in fuel tank, and are retrofitting nitrogen generator or fuel tank inerting systems which will further enhance the fuel tank inerting systems market size.

Key Takeaways

• APAC dominates the Fuel Tank Inerting Systems market owing to high investments in adoption of air separation units with increase in production and deliveries of aircrafts in the region.
• Increasing adoption of hollow fiber membrane in aircrafts due to its low cost and high flexibility drives the fuel systems and membrane filters in aircraft fuel tanks.  
• Growing trend for light weight aircrafts and adoption of light weight advanced materials in the production of aircrafts for better fuel efficiency have been creating opportunities for fuel tank inerting systems.
• Increasing applications of FTIS in Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with growing trend for UAVs in military and commercial sector poised to provide opportunities for fuel tank inerting systems during forecast period.

System Type - Segment Analysis

Hollow fiber membrane systems holds the major share in Fuel Tank Inerting Systems market in 2018 owing to its greater flexibility and lower costs over other type systems. This system can be combined with existing systems such as compressed air systems to supply nitrogen. According to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), hollow fiber membrane (HFM) gas separation technology provides for low-cost inert gas, as it applies to civil transport design criteria to allow for cost-effective onboard inert gas generation. Additionally, the externally pressurized polymethylene hollow fiber bundles are expected to exceed the 20 year life expectancy of the aircraft with lighter weight and smaller space requirements which set to increase the demand of hollow fiber membranes in fuel tank inerting systems market.

Application - Segment Analysis

UAV has been the primary application for Fuel Tank Inerting Systems market and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12.71% during forecast period 2020-2025. This is due to the increasing investment for the development of UAVs across the world. For instance, in 2018, approximately $702 million was invested in UAV companies by 299 investors, across 159 funding rounds. One of the company, Joby Aviation had received highest funding $100 million in 2018 from investors Intel, JetBlue and Toyota. According to FAA, around 412,000 commercial drone registrations and 1.1 million small hobbyist drones have been registered in 2019. The growing demand for UAVs is due to its multifarious applications such as remote sensing, aerial surveillance, motion picture filmmaking, oil and gas exploration, disaster relief, construction, and carrying aircraft ordnance. The UAVs sales are expected to rise from 2.5 million in 2016 to 7 million in 2020. Moreover, with the visual superiority, the capability of performing pre-emptive strikes, and surveillance on specific locations features, UAVs are being increasingly adopted in military forces globally in current warfare scenarios.

Geography - Segment Analysis

APAC dominated the Fuel Tank Inerting Systems market with a share of 34.28%, followed by North America and Europe in 2018 owing to high production of aircrafts when compared to other regions. For instance, Boeing aircrafts in APAC region had been increased from 212 to 219 during 2016-2018 period, whereas in North America, the aircrafts deliveries had been increased from 253 to 269 during the same period. In addition to these the military expenditure in APAC region had been increased from $451.22 billion to $506.15 billion which is 12% growth during 2016-2018 period. The increasing budget for military expenditure has created opportunities for production of defense aircraft, UAVs, drones, and jet fighters, which uses inerting systems for their fuel tanks which in turn drives the fuel tank inerting systems market during forecast period 2020-2025.

Drivers – Fuel Tank Inerting Systems Market

·         Growing trend for lightweight aircrafts

As there is increase in demand for fuel-efficient aircrafts from airlines in order to lessen their operational costs, manufacturers are focusing on integrating advanced lightweight materials in components to reduce the overall weight of the airplane. Lightweight aircraft significantly enhances the fuel efficiency which in turn drives the fuel tank inerting systems to leverage advanced lightweight materials. Furthermore, fuel-efficient aircrafts assist in the reduction of carbon footprint. For instance, KLM a Dutch-based airlines had revealed its new fuel-efficient “Flying V” aircraft which uses 20% less fuel compared with the current airbuses. This new aircraft design will reduce the carbon footprint in aviation and it is anticipated to enter the KLM fleet until 2040. The growing demand for lightweight aircraft is instigating the fuel tank inerting system manufactures to leverage advanced lightweight materials, thereby driving the market growth.

·         Stringent regulations on fuel efficiency and incorporation of advanced technology

FAA has mandated the installation of flammability reduction means (FRM) or ignition means on fuel tanks having a flammability exposure exceeding certain thresholds. Increasing production of aircrafts in various countries set to drive the market. According to FAA, the world aviation accidents increased from 42 to 62 in 2017-2018 period. The increasing number of aircraft fire accidents and fuel tank explosions coupled with increasing awareness about the stringent FAA regulations, has been instigating companies to incorporate advanced technology in order to deliver more efficient and lightweight variants which set to propel the fuel tank inerting system market growth.

Challenges – Fuel Tank Inerting Systems Market

·         High cost

High initial investment has been restraining the growth of the market. For instance, the average cost of fuel tank inerting system is around $600 million for the 1,019 Airbus and 2,795 Boeing aircraft operated by U.S. airlines. In addition to this, the installation cost ranges from $140,000 to $220,000 depending on the type of aircraft. High cost associated with installation and maintenance of the equipment set to hamper the growth of the market.

Market Landscape

The market of Fuel Tank Inerting Systems top 10 companies are Eaton, Parker Hannifin, Woodward, Honeywell, Meggitt, GKN Aerospace, UTC, Crane Co., Triumph Group, Cobham mission systems and among others.

Acquisitions/Technology Launches

• In December 2018, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had given a revised Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) to AerSale® for the installation of its AerSafe system on Airbus 319 and 320 aircraft. AerSafe system follows with the fuel tank flammability reduction (FTFR) rule. Integration of aircrafts with advanced fuel tank inerting systems by following the regulations set to drive the market growth.
• In May 2018, Cobham Mission Systems, a technology leader in Fuel Tank Inerting technology, had signed a long term agreement with U.S. airlines in order to provide 737NG air separation modules. This deal has contributed a total fleet of over 1,600 737NGs that will have Cobham equipment including fuel tank inerting systems, thereby driving the market growth.