China Aviation Supplies Holding Co. signs for 140 Airbus aircraft

China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS) has signed with Airbus a general terms agreement (GTA) for the purchase of a total of 140 aircraft. The agreement comprises 100 A320 family aircraft and 40 A350 XWB family aircraft, reflecting Chinese airlines’ demand in domestic, low cost, regional, and international long-haul market segments.

The GTA was signed in Berlin by Tom Enders, Airbus CEO, and Sun Bo, executive vice president of CAS, in the presence of visiting Chinese President Xi Jinping and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

“This is a great endorsement for our leading products in both single aisle and wide body segments,” Enders said.

The world’s passenger aircraft fleet above 100 seats is set to more than double in the next 20 years to over 40,000 planes as traffic is forecast to grow at 4.4% per year. Emerging markets such as China continue to be an engine for growth, with domestic traffic to become the world’s largest market, according to Airbus’ latest Global Market Forecast 2017-2036.

By the end of May 2017, the in-service Airbus fleet with Chinese operators totaled 1,440 aircraft, of which nearly 1,230 are A320 family planes.

To date, the A320 family has won more than 13,000 orders with more than 7,600 aircraft delivered to 400+ customers and operators worldwide.

Photo: Airbus SAS