BEIJING - The Boeing Company forecast Tuesday China will require 4,330 new commercial airplanes valued at $480 billion over the next 20 years.

Boeing made the forecast in a report released in Beijing, estimating China will triple its airplane fleet size over the period to make it the largest airplane market outside of the United States by 2030.

A file photo shows a Boeing B737-800NG aircraft prepares to land at the Soekarno-Hatta Airport in Cengkareng, in the outskirts of Jakarta Sept 15, 2010. [Photo/Agencies]

"China is one of the world's fastest growing and dynamic aviation markets, driven by the urbanization of China, the growth of its economy and ever increasing personal wealth," said Randy Tinseth, vice president of Marketing of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, at the release of Boeing's 2010 China Market Outlook.

Boeing forecasts strong Chinese demand for new, more fuel-efficient single-aisle airplanes, estimating the plane will account for 71 percent of the 4,330 deliveries.

China air-cargo carriers will buy about 330 freighter airplanes by 2030, tripling the size of China's air-cargo fleet, according to Boeing's forecast.

Tinseth also underscored the long-standing partnership between Boeing and its Chinese partners.

"Boeing's equity investment in China is considerable, and the aviation goods and services we buy from China are significantly greater than other aviation companies," Tinseth said. "In the coming years, Boeing purchases in China are expected to exceed $3 billion."

According to Boeing, more than 5,700 Boeing airplanes assembled in China are flying throughout the world with made-in-China components.