Boeing Raises Forecast for New Airplane Demand in China

China will need 7,240 new airplanes over the next 20 years with a price tag of  nearly $1.1 trillion dollars, the American manufacturer Boeing has said in a statement.

The figures underscore China’s importance to the global aviation market and the scale of China’s travel boom.

Total airplane demand will rise 6.3 percent over last year’s forecast according Boeing’s annual China Current Market Outlook (CMO) released in Beijing.

“China’s continuous economic growth, significant investment in infrastructure, growing middle-class and evolving airline business models support this long-term outlook,” said Randy Tinseth, vice president of Marketing, Boeing Commercial Airplanes.

“China’s fleet size is expected to grow at a pace well above the world average, and almost 20 percent of global new airplane demand will be from airlines based in China.”

Single-aisle airplanes look set to be the foundation of domestic and regional fleets in China with Boeing seeing the need for 5,420 new single-aisle airplanes through 2036, accounting for 75 percent of the total new deliveries.

Full-service airlines and low-cost carriers have been adding new single-aisle airplanes and expanding new point-to-point services to cater for both leisure and business travel demand in China and throughout Asia, said Boeing in explanation.

Tinseth said the backlog from Chinese customers demonstrates the new 737 MAX 8 remains at the heart of the single-aisle market.

Boeing forecasts the widebody fleet over the next 20 years will require 1,670 new airplanes. Airlines continue to shift to small and medium widebody airplanes for long-haul expansion and flexibility.

“China’s outbound travel market continues its rapid growth toward 200 million passengers annually,” said Tinseth. “With new technologies, superior capabilities and advanced efficiency, the 787 and 777X families will play a key role in supporting the growth of China’s long-haul market.”