Chinese demand for new aircraft expected to drive growth

Just as Chinese tourism will drive growth in the years ahead, so will the country's demand for new aircraft.

Boeing, the leading aircraft manufacturer in the United States, projects delivering 30,000 planes in the next 20 years with more than 14,000 of them going to Asian carriers. By comparison, 7,000 each are expected to be delivered in North America and Europe.

Five aircraft manufacturers gave their perspectives of the future of aviation in the closing sessions of the two-day Boyd Group International Aviation Forecast Summit. More than 400 airport, airline and manufacturing executives are in Las Vegas for the event at Bellagio.

Mike Boyd, president and CEO of the Boyd Group, said the global industry will be in a re-fleeting mode to upgrade to more fuel-efficient replacement aircraft, probably through 2020 to 2023. After that, it's a growth picture with the most dramatic expansion planned by Chinese airlines.

While manufacturers Embraer, Mitsubishi and Bombardier focused on the small regional jet market, Boeing and Airbus addressed the large aircraft market.

Christian Kley, vice president of strategic marketing for Airbus, said the delivery pipeline for the company's A350, designed to compete with Boeing's 777 and 787 models, will expand after the company delivered its first aircraft in January.

Kley also said Airbus is looking at adding a category of seating for its aircraft that bridges the high-end flat-bed business class seating with coach seating, currently marketed as a business economy class.

The airlines that will be buying and flying the planes are the highlight of the Boyd conference and seven carriers had presentations Tuesday:

Alaska Airlines

Presence at McCarran: 12 daily flights to three destinations

McCarran market share: 2.5 percent

Largest local markets: Seattle, Portland, Ore.

John Kirby, vice president of capacity planning for Alaska, said his airline is growing at a pace of 6 percent to 10 percent a year and has added 24 destinations in five years to 104.

The airline currently is growing its secondary hub airport in Portland, Ore.

Most of the airline's mainline flights are on Boeing 737s, but the company's sister carrier, Horizon Air, flies Bombardier Q400 turboprop aircraft.

Hainan Airways

Presence at McCarran: None

Wei Hou, vice president of Hainan Airlines, said his airline is looking at opportunities to serve secondary U.S. markets — which makes it a candidate for service to Las Vegas. Hainan already flies nonstop from China to Seattle and Boston.

Hou explained that under the current bilateral agreement between China and the United States, Chinese air carriers are limited to 180 flights a week from what are categorized as Zone 1 cities — Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou. But there are unlimited opportunities to smaller Chinese cities like its corporate headquarters, Haikou. Hou said Chinese airlines are flying about 90 percent of the allocated flights within the agreement.

Hainan's fleet includes a mix of Airbus A330, Boeing 767 and Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets for long-haul flights.

Nok Air

Presence at McCarran: None

Nok Air CEO Patee Sarasin explained that his Thailand-based low-cost air carrier has developed partnerships with other international airlines to deliver passengers beyond his country's borders.

This is a developing news story. Check back here for updates.

Contact reporter Richard N. Velotta at rvelotta@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3893. Find @RickVelotta on Twitter.