(File Photo)

Chinese airlines will need 8,575 new planes worth $1.21 trillion over the next 20 years to meet strong travel growth, said Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC), the manufacturer of China’s domestically produced C919 aircraft.

COMAC released the figure in an annual report on aviation market prediction at the ongoing 17th Aviation Expo China, which kicked off in Beijing on Tuesday.

The group predicted that the world will need 5,255 regional jets over the next 20 years, almost twice as many as Boeing projected earlier.

The prediction was based on the future scale of air travel, which, according to COMAC, will grow by 4.4 percent on average annually for the next 20 years.