Strong growth in emerging economies and evolving airline business models have prompted European manufacturer Airbus to boost its latest 20-year aircraft demand forecast by 7 percent compared to last year’s prediction.

The global fleet of passenger aircraft is expected to more than double to 48,000 in the next 20 years as plane-makers deliver more than 37,000 new aircraft valued at $US5.8 trillion at list prices.

Airbus is predicting the  37,390 new passenger and freighter aircraft will include  26,540 needed for growth and 10,850 to replace older, less fuel-efficient aircraft.

The figure is up from 34,900 aircraft in last year’s forecast as traffic grows at 4.4 percent.

Driving the growth will be an estimated 2.4 times increase in private consumption in emerging economies, higher disposable incomes and a near doubling of the middle classes globally.

The plane-maker forecast emerging countries would account for more than 60 percent of economic growth, with trips per capita to multiply 2.5 times for these nations.

Combined with evolving airline business models and continuing liberalization, Airbus said the growing scale of air transportation would lead to an increasing resilience to regional slowdowns.

Greater aircraft range and capacity through technological developments would allow airlines the flexibility to explore new business opportunities while maintaining focus on cost reduction.

“There is a growing trend to use aircraft across a broader range of operations, with today’s more capable aircraft blurring the boundaries between market segments,’’ Airbus chief operating officer Eric Schulz said.

“These realities made us develop a new segmentation with small, medium, large and extra-large categories, reflecting more closely the way airlines operate aircraft.”

Under the new categories, Airbus predicts the small aircraft segment — which covers most of today’s single-aisle aircraft — will need 28,550 new planes or about 75 percent of the total.

Read: Airbus formally takes on the C Series.

The medium segment, which includes smaller widebodies and longer-range single-aisle aircraft such as the A321neo, is tipped to need 5480 passenger and freight aircraft.

The large segment is where most of the company’s A350s reside and will require a forecast 1760 new aircraft.

The extra large segment, which includes high capacity long-range aircraft such as A350-1000 as well as the troubled A380 superjumbo, will need an estimated 1590 aircraft.

The company estimates the growth will see demand for  540,000 new pilots.

Portuguese wet-lease specialist HiFly has become the first airline to take on a second-hand Airbus A380 after it Thursday announced it had welcomed a former Singapore Airlines superjumbo into its fleet.

The A380, which HiFly described as its “first”, makes it the fourth European carrier to take the big plane and the 14^th operator globally. It is one of the A380s  Singapore handed back after their leases expired.

The Portuguese company took the double-decker plane in a deal done with German lessor Doric and said it would operate it in Singapore’s 471-seat three-class configuration, although it noted it could seat up to 853 in a single-class layout.

“We welcome the arrival of the Airbus A380 in our fleet and we are extremely happy with the market reaction so far on this new availability in our wet lease product offering,’’ HiFly chief executive Paulo Mirpuri said in the announcement.

“The A380, besides being the largest and most comfortable airliner in the world, is a star and the preferred aircraft from a customer experience perspective, including double first class suites, lounges, extra-large business class seats and individual IFE at each ergonomic economy seat.”

HiFly specializes in supplying aircraft and crew, maintenance and insurance — wet leasing — to airlines.

The news will be welcome in Toulouse after German leasing company Dr Peters confirmed in June that two other Singapore Airlines Airbus A380s were to be broken up and their components sold.

READ: A380 faces uncertainty as it marks 10 years in service.

Dr Peters said the decision came after intensive negotiations with airlines such as British Airways, Iran Air and Hi-Fly did not result in lease agreements that would satisfy investors’ requirements.

“The market for the A380-800 aircraft type has not developed positively in recent years,’’ Dr Peters chief executive Anselm Gehling said at the time.

“Some airlines have canceled orders from Airbus, while others have opted for smaller long-haul jets.

“Finally, the ongoing negative discussion about the A380-800 has not led airlines to increasingly rely on this type of aircraft.”

The A380 was thrown a lifeline when the world’s biggest operator of the plane, Emirates, signed a deal for up to 36 aircraft to be delivered from 2020.

The deal for 20 firm orders and 16 options was valued at $US16 million at list prices and allowed Airbus to continue production.

The new order brought Emirates’ commitment to the A380 program to 178 aircraft worth more than $US60 billion.

New Airbus chief salesman Eric Schulz told reporters at the sidelines of this year’s  IATA annual meeting there were still market opportunities for the A380 with existing and new operators.

He said the Emirates order had ensured the aircraft was industrially viable and could remain in production.

He also argued the concept of being able to better service saturated airports had been proven by the aircraft’s popularity at London Heathrow, where 10 percent of flights were on A380s.

However, he conceded there were not as many slot-constrained airports as had been predicted a decade ago

Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines powering Boeing 787s continue to cause grief for airlines with Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways (ANA) canceling more than 100 domestic flights from today.

The 113 July 6 to July 12 cancellations are necessary to allow the airline to carry out mandatory inspections on Trent 1000 engines using blades that could wear prematurely.

“We deeply apologize for the inconveniences caused to our customers,” ANA chief executive Yuji Hirako said in a message to customers.

“Over the last two years, we have been working very closely with Rolls-Royce and the regulatory authorities to minimize the impact to our flight schedule.

“However, due to the additional mandatory inspections which were announced in mid-June, we are canceling a limited number of flights.”

No international flights were affected by the inspections and the airline said passengers with reservations on the canceled flights would be re-accommodated to fulfill their travel itineraries.

“Safety is always our top priority for our customers, and we consider these cancellations unavoidable to maintain our highest safety standards,’’ Hirako said.

The engine issue is a massive headache for Rolls-Royce and primarily affects engines known as Package C.

This was compounded when the UK manufacturer announced in June that airlines with older Boeing 787 Trent 1000 engines would need to perform inspections because compressor blades in those engines may also be wearing prematurely.

READ: Rolls-Royce to axe 4600 jobs as problems found in older 787 engines.

The finding that Package B engines in service since 2012 could also be affected by a  blade durability issue came as the engine-maker continued to grapple with the fall-out of the issue with its Package C engines.

The package B problem added another 166 engines to about 380 package C engines already under the microscope.

The engine issue has led to flight cancellations and aircraft groundings as airlines faced increased inspections, range restrictions and delays in getting engines repaired. Some airlines have had to lease aircraft to replace out-of-service 787s.

The issue was first uncovered on ANA aircraft in 2016 and the airline is one of several which has experienced engine failures as a result of the flaw.

Passenger demand remained strong in May despite a slew of predictions about fare increases and warnings about a global trade war.

Global demand rose 6.1 percent to May 2017 and planes flew marginally fuller with a 0.1 percent rise load factor to 80.1 percent, according to new figures from the International Air Transport Association.

Most airlines are now singing from the same hymn sheet when it comes to fare increases and rising fuel costs.  IATA last month said it expected an average global increase in fares of about 3 percent this year with jet fuel prices expected to be 26 percent higher than last year.

However, other estimates suggest the fare increases could be higher.

READ: Fares to rise as fuel increases hit profits.

Added to this was another warning IATA director general Alexandre de Juniac about rising trade tensions.

“Last month, IATA released its mid-year economic report showing expectations of an industry net profit of $33.8 billion,’’ de Juniac said.

“This is a solid performance. But our buffer against shocks is just $7.76. That’s the average profit per passenger that airlines will make this year—a narrow 4.1 percent net margin.

“And there are storm clouds on the horizon, including rising cost inputs, growing protectionist sentiment and the risk of trade wars, as well as geopolitical tensions.”

Worldwide international passenger demand growth in May was 5.8 percent,  up from 4.6 percent in April.

WATCH: Scary take-off.

International traffic growth was strongest in the Asia-Pacific where demand grew by  8.0 percent with load factors continuing to rise.

“Passenger traffic has continued to trend strongly upwards in seasonally-adjusted terms, buoyed by a combination of robust regional economic growth and increases in the number of route options for travelers,’’ IATA said.

Traffic also rose in other regions with Europe up 6.2 percent, North America rising 4.9 per cent, Africa increasing 3.8 percent and Latin America experiencing a 7.5 increase in international traffic demand for May compared with last year.

The slowest growth was Middle East carriers at just 0.8 per cent, down from 2.9 percent in April.

IATA said an earlier Ramadan might have been a factor in the region’s slowdown “ but more broadly, the upward trend in traffic has slowed compared to last year”.

Domestic demand rose 6.6 percent globally, led by China (11.9 percent) and India (16.6 percent).

“Passenger volumes in India have fallen back in seasonally-adjusted terms in recent months alongside some mixed signals on the economic front,’’ IATA said. “Notwithstanding this, May was India’s 45th consecutive month of double-digit annual RPK growth

“Demand continues to be supported by strong growth in the number of airport connections within the country: some 22 percent more airport-pairs are scheduled to operate in 2018 compared to last year.”

The moderating growth in India and China was partially offset by a “mild pick-up” on domestic US routes of 5.5 percent, IATA said.

The perennial tail-end Charlie of IATA’s basket of domestic markets,  Australia, recorded 1.7 percent demand growth in May and a 2.5 percent increase in capacity.

First it was Airbus and Canada’s Bombardier, now it’s Boeing and Brazil’s Embraer.

Boeing and Embraer Wednesday announced a not unexpected deal to establish a strategic partnership that “positions both companies to accelerate growth in global aerospace markets’.

Assuming they get the necessary approvals, they expect the marriage to be consummated by the end of 2019.

The agreement is not binding but it proposes the formation of a joint venture in the commercial aircraft and services business of Embraer that would strategically align with Boeing’s operations.

Boeing will hold a controlling 80 percent ownership stake in the joint venture and Embraer will own the remaining 20 percent stake.

The transaction values 100 percent of Embraer’s commercial aircraft operations at $US4.75 billion and contemplates a value of $US3.8 billion for Boeing’s 80 percent ownership stake in the joint venture.

Boeing expects the partnership to boost its earnings per share from  2020 and generate estimated annual pre-tax cost synergies of approximately $US150 million by the third year.

“By forging this strategic partnership, we will be ideally positioned to generate significant value for both companies’ customers, employees and shareholders – and for Brazil and the United States,” said Boeing chief executive  Dennis Muilenburg.

“This important partnership clearly aligns with Boeing’s long-term strategy of investing in organic growth and returning value to shareholders, complemented by strategic arrangements that enhance and accelerate our growth plans.’’

Embraer chief executive officer Cesar de Souza e Silva added: “The agreement with Boeing will create the most important strategic partnership in the aerospace industry, strengthening both companies’ leadership in the global market.

“The business combination with Boeing is expected to create a virtuous cycle for the Brazilian aerospace industry, increasing its sales potential, production, creating jobs and income, investments and exports, and in doing so, adding more value to customers, shareholders and employees.”

The manufacturers said a finalized agreement would see the joint venture led by a Brazil-based management, including a president and chief executive. Boeing would have operational and management control of the new company, which would report directly to Muilenburg.

The deal will allow Boeing to compete with Airbus-Bombardier in the lower end of the single-aisle market, pitting Embraer’s E2 aircraft against Bombardier’s C Series.

READ:  Embraer E190-E2 certified by Brazil, Europe and the US.

The companies said they also plan to create another joint venture to promote and develop new markets and applications for defense products and services, especially the KC-390 multi-mission aircraft.

They expect to finalize the financial and operational details of the strategic partnership in the coming months.

It will then be subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals, including approval from the Government of Brazil.

The manufacturers said the transaction would have no impact on either company’s financial guidance for 2018 or Boeing’s plans to return free cash flow to shareholders.

Ryanair is facing a summer of industrial unrest after cabin crew joined Irish pilots in planning strike action.

The budget airline’s cabin crew issued a charter this week that included demands for a fair living wage, stable rosters and an end to requirements they pay costs for items such as water on flights.

The charter stemmed from a summit organized by the International Transport Workers’ Federation and the European Transport Workers’ Federation representing about 80 percent of Ryanair’s cabin crew workforce.

READ: Ryanair warns of European air traffic meltdown.

Cabin crew told the media they were forced to travel to Ireland to open bank accounts to receive their pay and were forced to report to work in person when sick to provide written details of symptoms.

“The charter contains demands on economic conditions, safety and rostering, a fair and supportive work culture, agency employment, the right to sick pay and sales targets,” the ITF said. “A key demand is also that employment contracts explicitly recognize national law and jurisdiction in the country a worker is based.”

Ryanair decided to recognize unions in December but the ITF said little progress had been made in the past six months and there had been no concrete improvements in pay and working conditions.

“If Ryanair fails to respond promptly and appropriately then it risks industrial action over the summer,’’ it said. “ The ITF and the ETF support all lawful industrial action undertaken by their national affiliates with the aim of winning a fair deal for workers.”

Ryanair only employs about a quarter of if its 8000 crew and outsources much of the work to agencies.

The carrier’s cabin crew in Spain, Portugal, Italy and Belgium are planning strikes, according to Bloomberg.

Pilots have also voted to take strike action in its home market of Ireland next week.

The Irish Air Line Pilots Association told Bloomberg a poll of cockpit crew produced a 94 to 1 vote in favor of industrial action with a walkout set for July 12.

Ryanair has described the demands as “pointless” and says cabin crew get sick pay, a 400-euro annual uniform allowance and could earn up to 40,000 euros a year.