The global market for Aircraft Antennas is expected to slump by -11.5% in the year 2020 before making a long and painful recovery to reach US$662.5 million by the year 2027, trailing a post COVID-19 CAGR of 6.6%, over the analysis period 2020 through 2027. The commercial aerospace industry which until 2019 witnessed stable growth guided by encouraging increases in air traffic volumes both cargo and passengers, is now heading for a devastating year in 2020, and estimated to register losses running into billions. Business has been severely disrupted in the aerospace industry across all regions, starting with Asia-Pacific, which is projected to bear the major absolute loss in 2020. Global traffic which was doubling for over a decade now has suddenly come to an abrupt end leaving unprepared airliners in shock with no revenue and structurally high costs. Outright bans and restrictions on international and domestic travel and lockdowns have evaporated demand for passenger flight services overnight, with total passenger traffic estimated to decline by 52.7%. The number of passengers is projected to drop dramatically to the 2006 levels, around 2.26 billion. Despite attempts to reopen and ease the restriction and efforts by airlines to drive passenger traffic through price stimulation, passenger revenues are anticipated to reduce to $241 billion, a major fall in comparison to $612 billion recorded in 2019. With second and third waves of infections continuing to sweep through countries worldwide and a vaccine still not sight, all non-essential travel and tourism will continue to remain muted. Complicated air safety regulations which are expected to follow in the post COVID-19 era such as immunity passports, mandatory quarantining of all travelers, among others will worsen the recovery process.

Growth in air travel and tourism which until now was a key driver of growth was largely led by the growing affluence of an expanding base of middle class population. The pandemic has dealt this very important growth drive a mortal blow in the form of rising levels of unemployment and erosion in household wealth. As of November 2020, over 50 airlines have already failed and filed for bankruptcies with more expected to follow. The industry is now heavily relying on the government rescue and bailout packages and funding to stay afloat and prevent nightmarish mass bankruptcies which are bound to follow in the absence of immediate financial aid. The U.S government has already budgeted stimulus bill to the tune of US$60 billion in aid for airlines which includes US$29 billion in payroll grants for workers, and another US$29 billion in loans for airlines. Inspite of the measures taken several companies have already collapsed. Especially vulnerable are low cost carriers who given their poor business model are intrinsically not suited to survive disruptions of this scale. Against this backdrop, aircraft manufacturers and their suppliers also coming under immense pressure. Countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, India among others which were ordering thousands of planes buoyed by an emerging middle class population, have abruptly put expansion plans on hold, impacting orders for manufacturing giants such as Boeing and Airbus. With fleet expansion plans virtually annihilated, aircraft OEMs giants like Boeing is lobbying for billions of dollars in state support, while Airbus SE is extending credit lines and cancelling shareholder dividends. With production lines at the unprecedented halt, manufacturers of aircraft antennas are bracing for a year of production and demand disruption and revenue losses.

In the post COVID-19 period, growth will be led by the move towards context aware connected aircraft. Effective and uninterrupted communication holds a pivotal role in aircraft safety. The aviation industry needs sophisticated technology to ensure communication between air traffic controllers and pilots. Aircraft communication goes beyond the connectivity among crew members and other aircraft to encompass other teams including airport operators, aviation specialists and security personnel. The communication plays a major role in enhancing safety and reducing the risk of catastrophic accidents, which can be prevented using effective communication. Aircraft communication is also gaining traction owing to increasing demand for consumers to stay connected during their flights. The need to access the Internet for accessing email, movies and communicate with people during air travel has accentuated the significance of aircraft communication. While an increasing number of airlines are offering in-flight Internet services, pilots continue to deal with traditional technologies, leading to disparate, complex and ineffective communication that delays response to unexpected events. Recent advances in aircraft communication are opening new avenues for better communication in the 21st century. Advanced technologies intended to serve the aviation industry are playing a vital role in seamless communication and data transfer over multiple links. These communication options are serving diverse needs of modern aircraft and providing pilots with information regarding traffic or weather for enhanced safety. The critical need to improve communication and align it with other standards and continuing digitalization will continue to result in major expansion of aircraft communication systems. Antennas are sophisticated devices intended to offer the necessary pivot to a communication system by facilitating reception and transmission of radio signals. These structures can radiate or receive electromagnetic waves for ensuring uninterrupted communication. Antennas convert the desirable information or signals into electromagnetic waves to support wireless communication. Since the development of wireless technology and practical use of radio communication, the antenna has evolved rapidly in terms of functions and became an integral part of modern wireless communication systems.