Boeing forecasts demand for 2,300 new aircraft in India

Boeing raised its long-term forecast for commercial aircraft in India as unprecedented domestic passenger traffic and rapidly expanding low-cost carriers (LCCs) drive the need for 2,300 new jets – valued at $320 billion – over the next 20 years.

This year alone, more than 10 million passengers, on average, traveled within India each month.

“To meet this increased domestic air traffic growth, we see the vast majority of available airplane seats coming from LCCs,” said Boeing Commercial Airplanes senior vice president of sales for Asia Pacific and India, Dinesh Keskar.

“The success of this market segment will mean more than 80 percent of all new airplane deliveries in India will be single-aisles. And the superior economics and fuel efficiency of the new 737 MAX airplane will be the perfect choice for Indian carriers.”

According to Boeing’s Commercial Market Outlook (CMO), India’scommercial aviation industry has achieved 51 consecutive months of double-digit growth. This growth is matched in other sectors of the country’s economy.

“The Indian economy is projected to grow by nearly 350 per cent over the next two decades to become the third largest economy in the world,” said Keskar. “This will continue to drive the growth of India’s middle class and its propensity to travel both domestically and internationally, resulting in the need for more new fuel-efficient short- and long-haul airplanes.”