China’s Private Jet Market Taxiing for TakeoffApril 21, 2011

 

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With the U.S. and European markets slumping after the 2008 economic crisis, private jet manufacturers are hoping a burgeoning Chinese market will provide the lift they need, according to an article in The Wall Street Journal.

Recent history supports that aspiration, with the number of private planes in the Asia-Pacific region seeing double-digit annual growth since 2005. China registered the highest year-to-year growth, according to JetNet, a private aircraft data service. There were 32 registered jets in 2008 and 56 by 2010, according to the Civil Aviation Administration of China. The trend is expected spike upward in 2011 with an estimated 60 new jets in China, twice last year’s total.

“Chinese buyers see private jets from a luxury lifestyle angle,” Francois Chazelle, Airbus's vice president of world sales for private aviation told the Journal. In the U.S., corporations buy jets to fly their executives on business trips.

Hong Kong Jet, a management and charter company noted that Chinese clients make up 50 percent of the purchase inquiries.

But its not all smooth growth for the private jet market in China. Most Chinese airspace is limited to commercial flights. Also, the infrastructure to service and store private jets at most airports is nearly non-existent. And to top it off, the Chinese government charges a high tax on new jet imports.

The industry is hoping, however, that China's round of investments will improve the infrastructure. The country pumped 1.5 trillion yuan ($230 billion USD) to build 45 new airports over the next five years. The government is also beginning to loosen it control over low altitude airspace, opening up for flights below 4,000 meters.

“The feeling is definitely one of optimism,” Jeff Miller, vice president of communications at Gulfstream, told the Journal. The company has 30 planes registered in China and 28 in Hong Kong. In 2001, it had zero planes in both places.

Bombardier, the Canadian jet maker, is estimates that it will sell about 600 new business jets to China between 2010-2019. The company said that China has been its single largest market over the past 12 months.