Aircraft maker Boeing predicts global airfreight traffic will grow 5.8 percent annually over the next 20 years -- a tripling of worldwide air-cargo traffic between now and 2027.
In the short term there is some market weakness and economic uncertainty around the world, but in the long term air cargo traffic will grow, Boeing said in its World Air Cargo Forecast 2008/2009.
The strongest growth will be seen in the Asian air cargo market, with domestic Chinese and intra-Asian markets expected to grow by 9.9 percent and 8.1% per year.
Boeing predicts that the worldwide fleet of freighter aircraft will increase to 3,890 from the current 1,950 aircraft during the 20-year period of its forecast.
According to Boeing, some 2,500 aircraft, or around 75 percent of the 3,360 cargo aircraft put into service, will come from passenger-to-freighter modifications while 860 will be new production freighters.
The Journal of Commerce Online
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