Asia-Pacific airline fleet shifts continue - Part 1. Inflated by China domestic

Asia-Pacific airlines are slowly rebuilding widebody and narrowbody fleets that were decimated by the COVID-19 crisis. As more aircraft return to service, a better picture is emerging of what fundamental changes have occurred.

Many airlines will look significantly different, as the pandemic has transformed the makeup of operating fleets as well as longer-term fleet strategies.

The region’s airlines have accelerated the retirement of older types due to the pandemic, catalysing the shift to newer, more efficient aircraft. Order books have been shaken up as airlines readjust to changed market expectations. And now new orders are starting to emerge, with airlines looking ahead to the next phase of their development.

The first part of this two-part analysis sets the scene, and focuses on how the inactive and active fleets have changed in the Asia-Pacific region as the pandemic has progressed.

The story is slightly different for narrowbodies and widebodies, and for different sub-regions in Asia.