Airbus targets Asia as fast-growing market

European aircraft manufacturer Airbus sees Asia, especially China, as the growth engine for the global aviation industry as the country's civil aviation sector has proved to be one of the most resilient markets in the world, said George Xu, Airbus executive vice-president and Airbus China CEO.

"As the world's second-largest economy, China had a steady growth this year and has entered the path of high-quality growth. Airbus is committed to the China market, and will continue to be a long-term partner with China," Xu said during a Vision China event in Beijing on Thursday.

While the government has made particular efforts to expand domestic demand, increase residents' incomes and improve infrastructure construction, high-quality development will offer more opportunities for the aviation industry, and growing urbanization will also trigger demand for air travel, he said.

This year, domestic air passenger traffic in China is expected to hit a record high, according to projections from the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

According to a forecast from Airbus, China's fleet size is expected to triple over the next 20 years and will surpass the United States in the early 2030s.

Speaking of new deliveries all over the world in the next two decades, half of all new aircraft will be delivered to the Asia-Pacific region, and in the Asia-Pacific, nearly half the market is in China.

Xu noted that this immense market size presents a unique opportunity for Airbus' business growth, and for the high-quality development of the entire industrial chain.

Back in 2005, Airbus decided to build its first single-aisle aircraft final assembly line outside of Europe in Tianjin.

In the past 19 years, Airbus Tianjin has delivered around one-third of the Airbus fleet in China.

"Behind the incredible achievements, it's a story of how Airbus contributed to China's high-quality development. We have over 200 suppliers in China. Through the local for local strategy, Airbus partnered with Chinese suppliers for aircraft parts and sections manufacturing," Xu said.

"We are inspired by China's commitment to high-quality development and higher level of opening-up. Airbus is here with our partners, in China, for China."