Page 7 - AAA SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2022 Online Magazine

a shortage of about 8,000 pilots. The region will face a short- compared to the same period in 2019. During
age of about 30,000 pilots by 2032, The Middle East is likely to the period, the country’s airports served 40.7
face a shortage of 3,000 pilots by 2023 and 18,000 by 2032, million passengers, an increase of 56.8 per-
the report adds. cent from the same period last year. As many
as 1.8 million foreign passengers traveled
to the country, an increase of 904.6 percent
from the corresponding period last year.
The pace of recovery is, if anything, expected
to be even greater in the second half of the
year. In June this year, the Civil Aviation
Administration of China (CAAC) approved
carriers in Vietnam and China to operate two
flights per week, up from one flight per week.
With the threat of the pandemic dying out,
Vietnam has opened borders and restored
flights to more than 20 countries, including
Japan, the U.S., the Republic of Korea, China,
Taiwan, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia,
Malaysia, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Laos,
Qatar, Turkey, UAE, France, Germany, the UK,
Russia, and Australia. According to the Civil
Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV), the
country’s airports will serve close to 88 mil-
Crucial Market lion passengers in 2022, an increase of 190
percent from 2021. The numbers of foreign
Projections by the three major plane makers provide proof, if any and domestic passengers are expected to
was needed, about the central role played by the Asia Pacific in touch 5 million and 82.8 million, up 844 per
shaping the future of the industry. Boeing’s Commercial Market cent and 178.4 per cent respectively.
Outlook 2022–2041 forecasts a market value of US$7.2 trillion
for new airplane deliveries, with the global fleet increasing by Battle for the Market
80 per cent through 2041 compared to 2019 pre-pandemic
levels. Asian markets will account for roughly 40 per cent of long- Vietnam’s speedy recovery hasn’t gone
term global demand for new airplanes, with Europe and North unnoticed. Earlier this year, both Embraer
America each accounting for just over 20 per cent of demand, and Airbus conducted tours of the country,
the company says. displaying the E190-E2 ‘TechShark’ and the
A220 respectively. There are opportunities up
According to Airbus, the Asia-Pacific region will require 17,620 for grabs in the country, with both Vietnam
new passenger and freighter aircraft during the next 20 years, Airlines and Bamboo Airways having made
with about 30 per cent of these replacing older less fuel-efficient public their plans to upgrade and diversity
models. The region will register passenger traffic growth of 5.3 their fleet. Bamboo Airways has ambitious
per cent per year. Much of the demand will be for smaller jets. plans for its fleet and wants to have 100 air-
According to the European powerhouse, Asia-Pacific will continue craft by 2028. Vietnam Airlines intends to
to drive demand in the medium and long-range categories, with acquire new planes for its regional routes as
about 42 per cent of global requirement. Embraer forecasts a it retires its fleet of ATR-72 aircraft. A decision
global demand for 10,950 new aircraft in the up-to-150 seats on the aircraft type is expected soon, with the
category, including 8,670 jets and 2,280 turboprops. The Brazilian new jets to be pressed into service by 2023.
plane maker predicts that while revenue passenger kilometers While Embraer officials believe the E190-E2,
(RPK) will grow 3.2 per cent annually (CAGR) over the next two which is designed to operate with up to 114
decades, the growth will be more pronounced in the Asia Pacific, passengers onboard, is the ideal aircraft for
at 4.3 per cent. As many as 2,230 of the new jets and 960 turbo- flights between regional and rural airports
props will be delivered to carriers in the region, it adds. with shorter runway distances, Airbus claims
that the A220’s range and capacity make it
Showing the Way the right choice for carriers that want to open
new regional routes. According to Airbus
The one bright spot in the region is Vietnam, which has seen its officials, the aircraft’s unmatched range
domestic aviation market recover at a speed unmatched any- capability makes connections from Vietnam
where in the world. According to Airbus and IATA, the growth rate to Australia, the Middle East, and North Asia
of the domestic market in the first half of 2022 is 123 per cent possible.

ASIAN AIRLINES & AEROSPACE SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2022 | 7