NEW YORK (AFP) - Global airlines will need an average of 31,000 new pilots every year for the next two decades as the air transport industry expands, Boeing said on Monday (July 25).

In its annual forecast of industry staffing needs, the US aircraft builder said staffing needs at carriers will also grow quickly for cabin crew - a total of 814,000 people needed through 2035 - and maintenance technicians, 679,000.

Those numbers are needed to serve a global fleet Boeing has predicted will rise by nearly 40,000 aircraft in the same period.

The pilot estimate was 10.5 per cent higher than last year's, Boeing said in a statement.

Forecast growth is strongest in the Asia-Pacific region, with 40 per cent of global need due to the rise of low-cost carriers using single-aisle aircraft like the Boeing 737 and the Airbus A320.

New aviation markets in Cuba and Mexico will drive stronger demand in North America, Boeing added.