Airbus forecasts that total demand for aviation services will double from 2026, reaching an estimated value of more than US$420 billion by 2045. The projection covers the aviation services market as a whole, rather than a single service segment.
The company estimates that the industry will cumulatively need 730,000 maintenance technicians, 660,000 pilots and 1,050,000 cabin crew over the period. Together, those roles amount to a projected need for more than 2.44 million additional skilled people. These are workforce requirements in Airbus’ forecast, not reported current vacancies.
Among the service categories, Airbus estimates that off-wing maintenance will reach US$217 billion by 2045, with a 3.7% compound annual growth rate. It attributes the segment’s projected increase to a growing and ageing global fleet and more shop visits. Maintenance operations support, a newly added cluster that includes inventory provision and engineering support, is forecast to reach US$104 billion, with a 4.3% compound annual growth rate.
Digital and connectivity is identified as the fastest-growing market segment, with a projected value of US$27 billion by 2045 and an expected tripling over the next two decades. Airbus also forecasts that Europe and CIS, North America and China will remain the largest services markets by total demand. Asia, defined in the forecast as Asia-Pacific, China and South Asia, is projected to grow fastest. These figures and regional comparisons are Airbus forecasts for the aviation services market.
