ECONOMIC GROWTH DRIVES ASIA PACIFIC PLANE DEMAND

Airbus and Boeing report that Asia-Pacific airlines will need a combined 23,760 airplanes delivered in the next 20 years. Boeing says strong economic and passenger growth will be the main drivers of new airplane demand in the Asia Pacific region. It estimates the region’s airlines will need an additional 12,820 airplanes valued at US$1.9 trillion, representing 36 percent of the world’s new airplane deliveries over the next 20 years.Increasing urbanization from already high levels in the region means that 25 of the 89 mega cities in 2032 will be in Asia Pacific. In the cargo sector, the region will continue to dominate the global market, Airbus says. It forecasts the freighter fleet operated by Asia-Pacific airlines will triple from just over 300 today to some 970, representing a third of the global freighter fleet by 2032.