We continue to examine the market for airliners between 100-149 seats in the wake of the Airbus joint venture for the C Series with Bombardier. Our latest fleet data, as of the end of the second quarter, indicates that there are 4,503 aircraft in this category and 4,239 of those aircraft are in service and 264 are parked. The average age of the active fleet is 21 years old, while for the parked fleet it is nearly 27 years old. Clearly, many of the aircraft in this segment are reaching replacement age.
Last Friday morning, Airbus Group CEO Tom Enders sounded an upbeat note on the future of the C Series, which is focused on this segment. “I see no reason why we should not be able to capture 50 percent of that market,” Enders said in Montreal at a breakfast organized by the city’s chamber of commerce. “I think we will sell thousands.”
