The Dragon On A Shopping Spree

Practical airplane purchases, hand-me-down jets and more, our Asian neighbour is setting new business aviation trends

- Arpita Kala

WHILE MAJOR GLOBAL AVIATION OPERATORS ARE STILL reeling from the flat fest that was the recently concluded Wings India 2018, the upcoming ABACE Shanghai 2018 may just get everyone’s spirits soaring to the skies. From military power to business aviation or even the largest population, India and China have long had a friendly (sometimes unfriendly too) competition of sorts in a quest to be the best or the first in all. And, the Asian Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (ABACE) is no different. Recovering from almost a decade long slump in business aviation after a meteoric rise, the Eastern neighbour seem to be all set to make up for lost time.

CHINA IS ON A SHOPPING SPREE 

President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign in 2014 has been attributed by many for the slump in Chinese Bizav. However, the Asia-Pacific region, especially China, still remains one of the busiest markets for many business jet operators. According to a 2015 report by business aviation consultants Asian Sky Group (ASG), mainland China remains the largest single market in the Asia-Pacific region with 313 business jets with a net increase of 13 business jets in the fleet in 2016.