Airbus delivers 142 commercial aircraft to China in 2021

Staff members pose for a group photo in front of an Airbus A350 aircraft delivered to China Eastern Airlines at the Airbus Tianjin Widebody Completion and Delivery Center in north China's Tianjin, July 21, 2021. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

BEIJING, Feb. 23 (Xinhua) -- Airbus delivered a total of 142 commercial aircraft to the Chinese market in 2021, Airbus China said Wednesday.

China remained Airbus' largest single-country market globally. Commercial aircraft deliveries in the country accounted for more than 23 percent of Airbus' global deliveries in 2021, according to Airbus China.

The delivery volume also marks a year-on-year increase of more than 40 percent compared with its deliveries in the Chinese market in 2020.

Among the 142 commercial aircraft delivered to the Chinese market, 130 are single-aisle aircraft and 12 are widebodies.

By the end of last year, around 2,100 Airbus commercial airplanes were serving in the Chinese civil aviation market. Meanwhile, more than 330 Airbus helicopters were serving in the Chinese market, according to data from Airbus China.

According to Airbus' forecast in November 2021, the global commercial aircraft market is expected to recover to the pre-COVID-19 level between 2023 and 2025, led by the single-aisle aircraft segment.

China will be a vital engine for the recovery of the global civil aviation market. The country's continuously growing market would need around 8,200 new commercial aircraft over the 2020-2040 period, accounting for more than 20 percent of the global demand.

By 2025, the total sum of China's certified civil transport airport will exceed 270, said the development plan for China's civil aviation industry during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025).

Then, China is expected to see its annual air passenger volume reach 930 million, and the country's civil aviation industry is expected to handle up to 17 million flights annually, said the plan issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China.