Description
An aircraft seat is made from a variety of non-metallic materials which include foam rubber cushion, upholsteries, fire blocking layer, plastic modeling, etc. Its structural integrity is another key factor that affects the framework of the aircraft seat. The level of comfort during a flight is influenced by aircraft seating. In addition to ease and comfort, it also provides the passenger with safety in case of emergency. The use of lightweight aircraft seats is preferred to save fuel, so it is challenging to design a lightweight aircraft seat without compromising on comfort.
Several prototypes that offer improved comfort have been introduced to the aircraft seating market in recent years, thus leading to growth in the industry. The growth in demand for seats with IFEC system, and maintenance is expected to boost the market growth. Retrofitting of an existing aircraft is also expected to drive the market growth.
The commercial aircraft segment is projected to witness the most elevated CAGR during the forecast period. The exceeding demand for aircraft seating within countries like China and India is expected to drive market growth.
The COVID-19 crisis has had a significant impact on the aviation industry, causing market uncertainty, supply chain disruption, and economic losses. The overall procurement of new commercial aircraft plummeted in 2020 owing to the pandemic. However, most OEMs experienced a large order backlog in 2020 due to the imposed lockdown.
The cost is a limiting factor due to the technological development in the aesthetics and ergonomics of the aircraft seating. In terms of key revenue segments, it can be noted that the economic class accounts for a major share within this market.
Moreover, in terms of end-users, the OEMs sector governs a large share of the revenue. For instance, Airbus delivered 57 aircraft to Indian carriers in 2020, making the country the largest market for commercial aircraft OEMs. As of 2020, IndiGo signed a contract to procure roughly 300 commercial aircraft models from Airbus.
Akasa airline also plans on purchasing roughly 70 aircraft by the year 2022. The manufacturers like Mitsubishi SpaceJet from Japan’s Mitsubishi and COMAC C919 and CRAIG C929 are expected to enter the commercial airline market, thus driving the growth of the segment. The exceeding demand in this market translates to an optimistic market outlook for the aircraft seating market in the forecast period.
Asia-Pacific is predicted to register the highest growth over the next five years. It will create high demand as the presence of India and China are poised to drive the market growth. This is because of the economic development and increase in foreign investment within this region. The rapid growth in aviation infrastructure within APAC boosts the market growth. An ever-increased number of local carriers are modernizing their fleet by buying new-age planes to supplant their maturing airplane. Boeing revealed that over the previous decade jet fleets of Asian carriers have almost multiplied from 3,600 to 7,000. The quantity of aircraft with fly armadas has increased from 200 to 250, while demands for fly armadas by these transporters have expanded from 1,940 to 4,400.
Manufacturers of aircraft seating are developing some key programs that will result in customer satisfaction with economic benefits to aircraft manufacturers by providing airline passengers with extra legroom, enough recline to sleep, and business-level flying comfort. Technologies like morphing are expected to serve as key market opportunities for the aircraft seating sector. Morphing is a long-rang, adjustable comfort seat that uses viscoelastic material to create a thin ergonomic layer that conforms to the passenger’s body shape.
Crystal cabin awards have been granted to the organization developing a new idea for aircraft cabins. The key ideas for 2020 include seats that can swivel to change the direction they face. One such technology is the “Modulair-S” economic class seat that comes with add-on accessories like an eight-way headrest, double-decker tables, and tablet holders, etc.
Design studio PriestmanGoode along with flying disables and SWS certification, has unveiled Air 4 all, a chair for a physically handicapped person that allows users to remain in their wheelchair for the entire journey. An aircraft seat manufacturer Recaro featured the latest version of CL3710 which secured 50% of the market share of Airbus A350 and Boeing 787. Also, the company has created a new model CL3810 with a reduced weight of 1.5kg per seat and offering new form and function. FACC’s LAV4ALL, designed by Aviation compliance solutions is a barrier-free lavatory for passengers with reduced mobility so that they can use it without any assistance for lifting.
The growing demand for single-aisle aircraft is rapidly growing with longer range flights it is important to make the journey comfortable and pleasurable. A Northern Ireland-based Thompson Aero Seating has developed VantageSolo, especially for narrow-body aircraft. Western airplane producers have experienced significant economic losses because of bottlenecks in the stock of seats. China is now attempting to secure its place in the new landscape. Jatai a Chinese manufacturer has delivered seats for Airbus A320 for the first time.
Some of the key players in the aircraft seating market are jamco corporation, Raytheon Technologies, Arco aircraft seating ltd., Airbus S.A.S, Gevan s.p.a, Recaro aircraft seating GmbH & CO. KG, Safran, Swire Pacific Limited, Stelia Aerospace, and Aviointeriors S.p.A. Long haul contracts and new item improvement are the key systems took on by key part to acquire an upper hand in the worldwide market.
