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AEROSPACE giant Boeing has forecast a 7.1 per cent traffic growth rate in Middle East air travel over the next 20 years.
Martin A Bentrott, vice president, sales, Middle East, Central Asia and India, Boeing, said: "The Middle East continues to outperform the rest of the world in air travel growth and is poised to continue growing over the next 20 years. In fact, Middle East demographics, where over half the population is under the age of 25, favour continued growth since younger people will account for much of the future market."
According to a recent IATA report Middle East carriers are expected to post a profit of $100 million this year, even as they gain market share by attracting increasing numbers of passengers from Europe to the Asia-Pacific region, through their hubs.
Boeing sees a requirement for 2,340 new airplanes in the Middle East by 2029 and predicts that the market will continue to be dominated by twin-aisle, long-range airplanes, which will account for almost 43 per cent of the demand.
