In the Boeing´s 2024 World Air Cargo Forecast published recently, the company indicated that air cargo traffic is to double by 2043, due to emerging markets drive growth, boosted by e-commerce and geographically shifted supply chains.
According to the company analytics, the air cargo traffic will increase by an average of 4% per annum through 2043, finally exceeding pre-pandemic levels.
´As the quickest and most reliable way to move goods, air cargo’s sustained growth has returned the industry to its long-term trend,´ said Darren Hulst, Boeing vice president of Commercial Marketing. ´There will be many drivers for continued freighter demand over the next 20 years, including expansion of emerging markets and global growth in manufacturing and e-commerce.´
The 2024 WACF indicates that the global air cargo fleet is forecast to rise to 3,900 aircraft by 2043 – including production and converted aeroplanes – meaning increase by two-thirds in comparison to 2,340 freighters in 2023. In addition, driven by demand in high-growth Asian markets, the large widebody cargo aircraft fleet will nearly double.
East and South Asian markets will see the highest traffic growth per year. In this regards, Asia-Pacific fleet is expected to nearly triple, causing carriers in that region to require the most deliveries of new aircraft (980), followed closely by North America (955). These two regions will account for more than two-thirds of global deliveries.
Moreover, the express carrier traffic will almost triple, from current 18% to approximately one quarter of the global air cargo market. Express carriers are poised to grow faster than the industry average due to an increasing role in e-commerce distribution and the expansion of express networks in emerging markets.
In terms of numbers, the 2024 WACF predicts 2,845 freight aircraft to be delivered until 2043 (1,005 newly manufactured and 1,840 conversions), of which 1,250 would be standard aeroplanes, 785 medium wide-body and 810 large wide-body freighters.
The complete 2024 World Air Cargo Forecast can be found under the following link: 2024 World Air Cargo Forecast
All quotations © Boeing. Information from the Boeing company press releases were used.
