China will become the biggest domestic aviation market in the world in the next two decades according to data from Boeing’s latest Commercial Market Outlook (CMO) report. 

The country will also account for 20% of the global aeroplane demand by 2042 as its aviation providers are set to order more than 8,500 new jets by 2042 with the vast majority of orders coming in the single-aisle sector, according to the report. 

Darren Hulst, Boeing’s vice president of Commercial Marketing, said: “Domestic air traffic in China has already surpassed pre-pandemic levels and international traffic is recovering steadily. 

“As China's economy and traffic continue to grow, Boeing's complete line-up of commercial jets will play a key role in helping meet that growth sustainably and economically.” 

The biggest drive for new planes in China will come from the single-aisle sector with 6,470 orders for the plane type, largely in line with the wider global demand. 

Boeing’s CMO also found that two-thirds of the expected demand will come from airlines growing their fleets, with a need for personnel set to match the growth as 433,000 new staff will be needed over the next 20 years, including 134,000 pilots and 138,000 technicians. 

Despite the big numbers shown, the US company’s projections for China will not be too surprising to those who read its initial CMO report, which said that China was expected to account for half of the aircraft demand in the Asia Pacific region. 

Forecasts that show China’s commercial airliner fleet doubling are also in line with the global data from Boeing which predicted a 48,600-strong global fleet by 2042. 

The China-focussed data also comes after the aircraft manufacturer released data for Africa which showed the aviation market in the continent would grow rapidly by 2042 with air traffic set to quadruple in the time period.