The global aftermarket services for passenger aircraft above 100 seats will reach $1.85 trillion over the next 20 years, while the fleet will more than double to 40,000 as traffic grows at 4.4 per cent every year, said an Airbus report.

During the period, the total industry aftermarket services spend will reach around $3.2 trillion, added the report titled Global Market Forecast 2017-2036.

Training, cabin and systems upgrades are also major contributors to the overall services market, it noted.

MRO

MRO is the largest activity represented under services market and is expected to double in the next 20 years. On an annual basis, Airbus predicts that the MRO spend will grow from $60 billion to over $120 billion per year; For this segment, there will be a necessity to manage mixed-fleet with ageing aircraft and new technologically advanced aircraft. In addition, the development of low-cost-carriers (LCCs) will further drive outsourcing strategies to allow airlines focusing on their core business of transporting their passengers. Asia Pacific will see the largest growth in MRO demand over the period.

Training

As the world fleet grows, so does the need for more pilots and technicians: Over one million pilots and technicians to be trained over the next 20 years, according to the forecast. Airbus has already tripled the number of its global training locations in the last three years and will continue to grow to propose tailor-made solutions to customers, right on their ‘doorstep’ while integrating latest technologies and web-based solutions.

Cabin & systems upgrades

Airbus projects that over the next 20 years the upgrade market will be worth US$180 billion, driven in part by high competition between airlines who value the ‘passenger experience’ as a differentiator (comfort, connectivity etc.), as well as systems upgrades. Notably, 38 per cent of this market will be Asia Pacific. – TradeArabia News Service