Global demand for planes set to soar

Between this year and 2031, Airbus has identified a need for more than 28,200 new passenger and freight aircraft, worth nearly $4 trillion.

Between this year and 2031, Airbus has identified a need for more than 28,200 new passenger and freight aircraft, worth nearly US$4 trillion (Dh14.69tn), reconfirming an upward trend in the pace of new aircraft deliveries.

The aviation industry has reduced fuel-burn and emissions by 70 per cent and noise by 75 per cent in the past 40 years.

It is now targeting total carbon-neutral growth by 2020 and a 50 per cent reduction in net carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.

On the A380, for example, only three litres of fuel per passenger is needed to travel 100km - the same amount used by a small family car.

The European plane maker is in the midst of lifting production of its best-selling A320 single-aisle aircraft to a record 42 a month.

This year it was forced to postpone plans to aim for 44 a month amid growing concerns over the health of its supply chain. Higher output is crucial to clearing a backlog of up to seven years.

"The first available delivery slots in reasonable quantities are in 2019, but none of this is set in stone," Laurence Barron, the president of Airbus China, told Reuters at the China air show yesterday.