It's pretty typical for Playmobil to reuse the molds. They spent a lot of money making that plane mold and I doubt it's worn out after only a one year run. I think it will be back in another color scheme eventually. It really is an excellent design.
I do think there's a slight shift, in that they have trimmed a number of lines back quite a bit but there are still a few sets from them available. For instance there are still a few Romans though most of the series is gone, the same with the zoo sets. So they have perhaps moved away from their tendency to discontinue an entire theme at once, and are letting sales figures have a bigger impact on what stays on.
