Boeing, the leading multinational aircraft corporation has released an updated global forecast on air traffic recovery. The company foresees the industry will return to pre-pandemic levels by 2024.
The forecast is even higher than the $8.5 trillion predicted a year ago, and the $8.7 trillion in 2019 before the pandemic hit the international travel industry.
In fact, the company predicted that the aerospace market will be worth $9 trillion over the next few years.
“As our industry recovers and continues to adapt to meet new global needs, we remain confident in long-term growth for aerospace,” said Boeing chief strategy officer, Marc Allen.
According to Allen, one of the most compelling factors for confidence is how fast domestic travel has rebounded in the last 12 months.
Boeing forecasts domestic flights would reach 2019-like air traffic levels in 2022, regional transport in 2023 and international travel in 2024.
The airline body International Air Transport Association (IATA) registers 2020 as the worst year for the air transportation industry ever recorded.
Passenger numbers fell 60% to 1.8 billion, and the industry lost $126bn.
Also, Darren Hulst, Boeing vice president of commercial marketing confirmed the company has lost two years of growth.
However, Boeing is confident the vaccines will play a central role in the economic recovery.
“We are encouraged by the fact that scientists have delivered vaccines more rapidly than imaginable and that passengers are demonstrating strong confidence in airplane travel.”
Ironically, another factor the company believes is a key to its unexpectedly fast recovery are the international land border closures.
Barring people from traveling by land, has done nothing but artificially increase the demand for international flights.
Boeing maintains that international travel restrictions need to be eased in order to enable “the recovery of the pent-up demand that exists already in the marketplace.”
“While we remain realistic about ongoing challenges, the past year has shown that passenger traffic rebounds swiftly when the flying public and governments have confidence in health and safety during air travel.