Demand from China for executive jets is expected to total 805 aircraft over the next decade – from 2014 to 2023 – according to a projection for the executive aviation division of Brazilian aeronautical company Empresa Brasileira de Aeronáutica (Embraer), published Tuesday in Beijing.

As part of the Chinese International Business Aviation Show (CIBAS 2013), Guan Dongyuan, chairman of Embraer China, said that large executive jets were expected to account for 51 percent of the total by number of units, and 78 percent by value.

Embraer has a positive outlook for the Chinese business aviation market based on studies of the country’s economic development, as well as the fact that the executive jet fleet has grown by 27 percent per year, driven by a 26 percent increase in the wealthy population between 2008 and 2012, according to figures published by the Hurun Report, one of China’s most influential luxury publications.

Since 2004, when Embraer delivered its first Legacy 650 executive jet in China, the company has received 38 firm orders and five optional orders for the jet in the country.

At the end of August the first Legacy 650 executive jet assembled by the Harbin Embraer Aircraft Industry, a partnership between Embraer and the Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) carried out a successful maiden flight and its delivery is scheduled for the end of this year. (macauhub)