Boeing expects Southeast Asia to need more than 4,200 new commercial planes over the next 20 years to meet the projected passenger and cargo demand in the region.

In its 2022 Commercial Market Outlook (CMO) for Southeast Asia — released at the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) 66th Assembly of Presidents conference in Bangkok — the American planemaker noted that the forecast sees a "return to a rapid rate of growth" over the next 20 years.

"To meet a projected long-term growth of 5.3% in passenger and cargo travel in the coming years, the CMO anticipates the region's carriers will need more than 4,200 new commercial airplanes over the next 20 years," Boeing said.

This represents a huge growth in the current size of Southeast Asia's fleet of 1,600 and would make the region the second-largest market in Asia.

Broken down, the 4,255 planes will consist of 50 regional jets, 3,430 single-aisle planes, 740 widebodies, and 35 freighters.

"While our industry’s full recovery in Southeast Asia relies on travel policies, health initiatives and workforce availability among other factors, Boeing expects the region's passenger traffic will surpass pre-pandemic demand over the next few years," said Dave Schulte, Boeing commercial marketing managing regional director for, Asia Pacific.

"We continue to expect tremendous upward mobility in this emerging region, with nearly 70% of all new deliveries in Southeast Asia serving growth in demand over the next 20 years," Schulte added.

Southeast Asia's current fleet and the number of commercial flights have increased by more than 50% in 2022 compared to 2019 before the pandemic.

The 2022 Southeast Asia CMO projection notes the single-aisle and widebody airplanes will support an expanding intra-regional low-cost carrier network as well as long-haul traffic growth.

Meanwhile, Boeing said the demand for commercial services to support the rapid growth of the fleet is valued at US$245 billion.