Airbus forecasts need for over 39,000 new aircraft in the next 20 years

The world's passenger and freighter aircraft fleet is set to more than double from today's nearly 23,000 to almost 48,000 by 2038 with traffic growing at 4.3 per cent annually, European multinational aerospace corporation Airbus said on Wednesday.

This will result in a need for 5.5 lakh new pilots and 6.4 lakh new technicians. Of the forecast 47,680 fleet, 39,210 are new and 8,470 remain from today.

Resilient to economic shocks, air traffic has more than doubled since 2000, said Airbus. It is increasingly playing a key role in connecting large population centres, particularly in emerging markets where the propensity to travel is among the world's highest as cost or geography make alternatives impossible.

About a quarter of the world's urban population is responsible for more than a quarter of global GDP. Given both are key growth drivers, aviation megacities will continue to power the global aviation network. Developments in superior fuel efficiency are further driving demand to replace existing less fuel efficient aircraft.

"The four per cent annual growth reflects the resilient nature of aviation, weathering short term economic shocks and geopolitical disturbances. Economies thrive on air transportation. People and goods want to connect," said Christian Scherer, Airbus Chief Commercial Officer and Head of Airbus International.

"Globally, commercial aviation stimulates GDP growth and supports 6.5 crore livelihoods, demonstrating the immense benefits our business brings to all societies and global trade," he said in a statement.

"By updating fleets with latest-generation fuel-efficient aircraft such as the A220, A320neo Family, the A330neo and the A350, Airbus believes it will largely contribute to the progressive decarbonisation of the air transport industry and the objective of carbon-neutral growth from 2020 while connecting more people globally," said Scherer.