Boeing eyes growing Indonesian market

Boeing eyes growing Indonesian market

JAKARTA (JP): Boeing Commercial Airplane Group, an American
aircraft manufacturer, expects to gain more orders from airlines
in Indonesia and other Asian countries in line with the increase
of the air travel business in the region.

Boeing's regional director for marketing, Gregory H. Russell,
told reporters yesterday that the world's airline industry has
recovered after the 1990 to 1992 unprofitable period.

He said that the world gross domestic product, revenue
passenger miles and the airline industry's operating profits have
significantly grown since 1993.

He said that worldwide revenue passenger miles, which were
less than 1.3 trillion in 1992, jumped to 1.35 trillion in 1993
and to over 1.5 trillion last year.

In the meantime, the airline industry's operating profits
surged as well from some US$2.5 billion in 1993 to about $8
billion in 1994 and to almost $12 billion in 1995. The airline
industry suffered total losses of approximately $4 billion during
the 1990 to 1992 period.

Russel said that the Asia-Pacific was the most promising
region for the industry.

The rate of revenue passenger miles of the airlines in the
Asia-Pacific has shown higher growth than those in Europe and
America, he said.

"Air travel growth will vary among major travel markets,"
Russell said.

He said that Indonesia would be one of the countries with the
highest rate of annual traffic growth in the 1996 to 2000 period.

"The rate is estimated to reach 7.8 percent in Indonesia, 7.1
percent in the Pacific, South Asian and Middle Eastern regions
and 6.7 percent in China," he said.

He said that the demand for airplanes will also increase with
the growth of traffic and profits.

Market requirements in 1996 to 2015 will most likely consist
of 68 percent for single aisle aircraft, 22 percent for
intermediate twin-aisle airplanes and 10 percent for wide-body
aircraft.

As of 1995, airlines in Asia operated 33 percent of the
intermediate-size and large aircraft, followed by U.S. airlines
with 27 percent, European airlines with 23 percent and other
countries with 17 percent.

Deliveries of intermediate-size and large jets in the 1996 to
2000 period will be 40 percent for Asian airlines, 29 percent for
U.S. airlines, 22 percent for European airlines and 9 percent for
other airlines in the rest of the world.

"The key Asia-Pacific airline markets will be Boeing B-747 and
B-777 series which are proper for regional, Asia-Europe and
trans-Pacific routes," Russel said.

Boeing's sales director for Southeast Asia, Paul, G. Dunbeck,
said yesterday that his company had recorded orders for 268 B-777
aircraft worldwide as of March 6.

"The B-777 has captured 73 percent of the market since its
launch in 1990," he said, adding that the remainder belonged to
Airbus A-330 and A-340 series.

Boeing has boasted that the 305-seat B-777 aircraft offers 13
percent more than its competitors -- the A-330 and A-340 series.

Meanwhile, the company announced on Monday that it will
increase its planned production rate of three of its commercial
aircraft for 1997, reflecting the positive market outlook for new
airplanes.

Boeing planned to accelerate production rates on the B-737, a
twin-engine medium-sized airplane; the B-757, a larger twin-
engine plane; and the B-747, a four-engine jumbo jet, Reuter
reported.

The B-737 production rate will be increased from its current
seven per month, to 8.5 per month in the fourth quarter, to 10
per month in the first quarter of 1997.

The B-757 will return to a monthly output of four airplanes
per month from three airplanes. In the second quarter of 1997, B-
747 production will increase from 3.5 airplanes per month to four
airplanes.

Boeing previously announced an increase in the production rate
of its new twin-engine B-777 jet from its current two airplanes
per month, to 3.5 units per month in the fourth quarter and five
per month in the first three months of 1997.

The pace of production of the B-767, a twin-engine medium
range airplane, will remain at four per month.

The plan will bring monthly production for all five Boeing
models to 27 airplanes by the second quarter of 1997. Current
production is at 18.5 per month.

Boeing, the world's leading producer of commercial aircraft,
also plans to modify its 747 jet to fly more people over longer
distances than any other passenger plane.

The plan is likely to anticipate the planned A-3XX a double
deck aircraft to be developed by the European consortium Airbus
Industrie. (icn)