China leads region in business aircraft

?

A guest sits in the pilot seat during a tour of a Cessna Grand Caravan aircraft during the Shanghai International Business Aviation Show at the Hongqiao International Airport in Shanghai April 16, 2013.?[Photo/Agencies]

The Chinese mainland led the region in business aircraft in 2012, with 187 aircraft, up by 103 percent from 2002, data from market researchers JetNet show.

The number of business aircraft in the Asia-Pacific region jumped from 947 in 2002 to 1,566 in 2012.

"The Asia-Pacific region continues to be a large growth market for business aviation, fuelled by some of the most exciting economies in the world," said Ted Farid, vice-president of sales for the Asia-Pacific region of Beechcraft Corp, a US business aircraft manufacturer.

Business leaders and entrepreneurs in the region know more about the usefulness and convenience of business aircraft, he added.

Around 58 percent of the region's business fleet are jets and 42 percent are turboprops. But turboprop popularity is growing.

Deliveries during 2008 and 2012 were 27 percent higher than between 2003 and 2007.