European plane-maker Airbus has increased its forecasts for long-term new plane demand but said the current industry crisis is likely to spark a spate of new order cancellations this winter.

The EADS subsidiary said in a Thursday statement it saw global demand for 25,000 new aircraft across the industry in the twenty-year period between 2009 and 2029, up from the 24,262 it forecast for 2007-2027.

It said replacement of older aircraft and the expansion of low-cost carriers would both be factors in future growth, while the new planes would have a total value of $3.1 trillion.

Airbus Chief Operating Officer for Customers John Leahy told reporters, however, that he thought the upcoming winter would be tough for airlines, which would then cancel or postpone orders.

I think it's going to be a difficult winter. Airlines flew with not very high yields in the summer so did not build up the war chests they usually do, he said.

We are expecting some airlines to say 'we'd love to have the aircraft, but we haven't got the money'.

Yields, a keenly-watched indicator in the airline industry, show average fares per passenger.

Global airline body IATA said this week that the industry would lose a collective $11 billion this year as weak passenger and cargo demand hits revenues.

John Leahy added that he remained confident the company's 2010 deliveries would match the current year, which in turn is expected to stay flat on 2008 at around 480.

He added that he did not expect a World Trade Organization inquiry into the competitive impact of subsidies received by Airbus to disrupt the development of its new A-350 wide-body jet.

I see no impact on the A-350 program from the WTO, he said.

Airbus said that in spite of an anticipated 2 percent fall in Revenue Passenger Kilometers (RPKs) this year -- a measure of air travel passenger numbers -- the firm expected the figure to be up 4.6 percent next year and continue at similar levels.

Arch-rival Boeing said in its equivalent forecast in June that it expected 29,000 new planes to be ordered over twenty years, at a value of $3.2 trillion.

(Additional reporting by Myles Neligan, Editing by Rosalba O'Brien; editing by Simon Jessop)