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India's domestic air traffic is set to grow at the "fastest rate" of 10% against the global average of about five per cent in the next two decades, triggering a demand for over 29,000 additional planes across the world, aircraft manufacturer Airbus said today.
Air travel till 2032 will be fuelled by traffic to and from emerging markets like India, Brazil and China, and world air traffic will grow at 4.7% annually, requiring 29,220 new passenger and freighter aircraft valued at nearly $4.4 trillion.
In its latest Global Market Forecast for the next 20 years (2013-2032), Airbus said: "Domestic flows are set to rise strongly, with domestic India growing at the fastest rate (nearly 10%), followed by China and Brazil (seven per cent)."
The forecast said "by 2032, Asia-Pacific will lead the world in traffic overtaking Europe and North America".
"Today on average, a fifth of the population of the emerging markets take a flight annually and by 2032, this will swell to two-thirds," the major aircraft firm said.
Overall, with an above world average traffic growth rate of 5.5%, Asia-Pacific will account for 36% of all new passenger aircraft demand, followed by Europe (20%) and North America (19%), it said.
"The attraction of air travel means that passenger numbers will more than double from today's 2.9 billion to 6.7 billion by 2032, clearly demonstrating aviation's essential role in economic growth," Airbus' Chief Operating Officer (Customers) John Leahy said while releasing the forecast.
He said in the very large aircraft market, dominated by super jumbo A-380, there was a requirement for 1,334 passenger aircraft valued at $519 billion.
"Of these, 47% will be needed in the Asia-Pacific region, followed by the Middle East (26%) and then Europe (16%). Asia-Pacific's requirement for the A-380 is demonstrated by the region's growth in middle classes which is set to quadruple in Asia-Pacific in 20 years," Leahy said.
