Airbus sees itself as well positioned to meet expanding demand in emerging regions

Airbus chief operating officer - customers John Leahy said (04-Sep-2012) the manufacturer "is very, very well positioned" to respond to growing demand in areas such as India, China, Latin America and Africa, where Airbus forecasts passenger traffic will grow at an average of more than 6% p/a over the next 20 years. Airbus believes domestic air traffic expansion in China and India will lead the growth in revenue passenger kilometers through to 2031, generating the requirement for modern, efficient narrowbody aircraft. Demand for narrowbody aircraft will also be generated by the increased presence of low-cost carriers in the Asia Pacific and Africa. Mr Leahy also noted another need of global airlines will be very large aircraft in the category of Airbus' A380, as well as large twin-engine aircraft, with the number of aviation "mega-cities" increasing from 42 in 2011 to more than 90 by 2031, accounting for over 95% of all long-haul international trips. [more - original PR]