According to the last forecast of global air transportation industry development made by Airbus, more than 1000 aircraft with the capacity of 100 and more seats will be required for the Russian carriers in the next 20 years, the company reports. AEX.ru
Thus, Russia will be the sixth country by demand for passenger liners following USA, China, India, Germany and UK.
It is expected that Russian airlines will increase their fleet of liners with 100 or more seats from 519 ones operated in 2010 to more than 1058 in 2030. It means that Russian airlines will acquire 1006 passenger aircraft in the next 20 years, which will be used to replace ageing jets and to expand the fleet. Among these liners are 839 single-aisle aircraft, which are operated very actively by the Russian carriers and 145 wide-bodies along with 22 ultra-large jets, which will help meet the growing demand for long-haul transportation. The total value of potentially acquired aircraft is $95 billion.
According to Airbus, the average annual increase of passenger traffic in Russia in the next 20 years will be 5,6%, which exceeds the similar global average indicator of 4,8%. Such a fast growth is caused by the growing economic indicators and consolidation of airlines. The fastest increase of passenger traffic will be recorded on destinations connecting Russian cities with Asian-Pacific Region (+7%) and CIS Region (+6,7%).
“We see the stable demand for new efficient liners in Russia and we are assessing the demand of this market at more than 1000 passenger aircraft in the next 20 years. We intend to have at least half of these orders”, - said Chris Buckley, executive vice-president, Europe, Asia and Asian-Pacific Region. “Russia remains the strategically important market for Airbus. We have significantly increased our presence here this year by increasing the base of our operators by three airlines. We expect that 2-3 more Russian airlines will become the new operators of Airbus aircraft this year”.
Airbus has been developing a cooperation with Russian aircraft industry for more than 20 years and both parties are willing to build a long-standing and mutually beneficial partnership. Among the significant milestones are: successful activities of Airbus ECAR Engineering Center in Moscow, joint research and development programs, production of parts for Airbus aircraft at the Russian aviation plants, acquisition of Russian materials. Such a comprehensive and unique program allows Russia to participate as an equal partner in all the main stages of Airbus aircraft creation.
At present 9 Russian companies are operating more than 170 Airbus aircraft, while over 80 liners will be delivered in the nearest future, Airbus noted.
