The International Air Transport Association estimates that by 2035, nearly 7.2 billion people will travel by air, a 100% jump from current levels. Moreover, most of these people are expected to be from Asia-Pacific, particularly India and China. According to Boeing, in the next 20 years, the demand for aircraft will go over 39,000 and of these; about 15,000 will be from Asia-Pacific. Therefore, as the number of air travelers grows, airlines will look to make their journeys as comfortable as possible, especially for those traveling by economy class. This will augur well for the market during the forecast period.
Airlines Look to Enhance Economy Class Comfort in a Bid to Boost Sales
Economy and premium economy class travelers are swelling in number and are demanding greater travel comforts. The economy class seats are infamous for having very little leg space as airlines want to accommodate more passengers in this class. Moreover, in-flight entertainment for this class of travelers is virtually absent. As a result, many airlines today are looking to increase comfort levels in economy class by providing more leg space and better entertainment options. For example, Qantas recently installed seats with moveable bases in the economy class of its A380 fleet that can be reclined for a more comfortable sleep. Similarly, Virgin Atlantic redesigned and refitted seats in the premium economy class of its Boeing 747 aircraft flying out of Glasgow, Manchester, and London that offer seats that are 21 inches wide and have a pitch of up to 38 inches. These developments will give rise to lucrative business opportunities, as per the aircraft seating industry report.
List of top companies in the Aircraft Seating Industry are:
- Iacobucci HF Aerospace
- Thomson Aero Seating
- Zodiac Aerospace
- Acro Aircraft Seating
- Expliseat
- Lufthansa Technik
- Embraer Aero Seating Technologies (EAST)
- HAECO
- Mirus Aircraft Seating
- Zim Flugsitz
- Collins Aerospace
Presence of High Net worth Individuals (HNWIs) to Propel the Industry in North America
With a revenue generation of USD 2.7 billion in 2017, North America is projected to dominate the aircraft seating market share, mainly because of the presence of a considerable number of high net worth individuals in the region. Their presence is expected to push up the demand for business class traveling. In fact, according to the aircraft seating market trends, business class seating will witness a demand spike in the coming decade in North America. In Asia-Pacific, operational expertise of aircraft OEMs such as Mitsubishi is anticipated to fuel the market in the region during the forecast period.
Rising Adoption of New Seating Technologies by Airlines to Spur Competition
Major airlines are increasingly demanding high-quality seating technologies and this is intensifying competition among key players in this market, according to the aircraft seating market forecast. For instance, in May 2019, Etihad selected Acro Aircraft Seating to supply its innovative Series 6 economy class seats which boast an excellent seatback curve, providing passengers immense legroom and knee comfort. Some airlines themselves are coming out with novel ideas. For example, Lufthansa developed slim seats made with mesh fiber for increased legroom for passengers.
AUTHOR: Deepu Bhat
Deepu is currently working as a content specialist in a reputed market research firm Fortune Business Insights.
