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On December 30, two major Chinese airlines announced significant aircraft orders from Airbus, collectively totaling 55 aircraft valued at approximately $8.2 billion. This highlights China’s growing importance as the largest single market for the European aircraft manufacturer.
One of the airlines, based in Shanghai, revealed plans to purchase 25 A320 series planes for about $4.1 billion according to the latest pricing catalog. Delivery of these aircraft is expected to occur in batches from 2028 through 2032. Similarly, another Shanghai-based airline announced an order for 30 A320neo aircraft at an estimated catalog price of around $4.1 billion, with deliveries also scheduled between 2028 and 2032.
Both airlines emphasized that the final purchase prices would be negotiated further with Airbus, and the actual costs are likely to be lower than the catalog prices.
The Airbus A320 family is among the most widely used single-aisle passenger jets globally, with approximately 11,300 units in operation worldwide. Over 2,000 of these planes are flying within China, making up nearly half of the country’s passenger aircraft fleet.
This year marked four decades since Airbus entered the Chinese aviation market. Since then, its market share has grown from about 20% in 2008 to more than 50%. During a ceremony marking the delivery of the 800th A320 at the Tianjin assembly plant on December 17, the company’s executive noted the milestone.
The Tianjin assembly plant, which opened in 2008, was Airbus’s first manufacturing site outside Europe. Its second line, established in October, expanded the company’s total production facilities to ten worldwide.
Industry forecasts suggest that China’s civil aviation sector will overtake North America and Europe within the next two decades to become the world’s largest. By 2043, the nation’s fleet is projected to reach 11,160 aircraft, with 9,520 new planes added, representing more than 20% of the world’s total commercial aircraft.
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