Loading

Boeing predicts big Latin America market

Analysis

Seattle (AP) - Boeing Co. predicts that Latin American airlines

will need 1,730 airplanes worth $120 billion over the next 20 years as air travel

in the region grows.

Boeing estimates that air travel in Latin America will grow 6.6 percent during the next two decades, above the world average of 5 percent and second only to China's 8.8 percent forecast growth rate.

The Chicago-based company, whose commercial airplanes division is headquartered in Seattle, projects that 80 percent of planes delivered to Latin America over the next 20 years will be single-aisle jets with 90 seats or more.

Planes with 200 to 400 seats are expected to make up 12 percent of new plane deliveries during that period, compared with 8 percent for regional jets with fewer than 90 seats. Jumbo jets like Boeing's 747 or Airbus' A380 will comprise less than 1 percent of new deliveries, according to Boeing's projections.

New airplanes, plus existing aircraft and purchases of used planes, will give Latin America's commercial fleet a total of more than 2,420 airplanes by 2026, Boeing said.

Boeing presented its market outlook for Latin America at the Latin America Airfinance Conference in Rio de Janeiro on Monday.

Earlier this year, Boeing released a global forecast projecting a $2.8 trillion market for new commercial airplanes over the next 20 years, representing about 28,600 new commercial airplanes, including both passenger planes and freighters.

Want More Analysis Like This?

CAPA Membership provides access to all news and analysis on the site, along with access to many areas of our comprehensive databases and toolsets.
Find Out More