The world’s top aerospace giants announced a $20 billion slew of orders on Monday as the industry hawked its latest jets on the first day of the Paris International Air Show.
Under heavy grey skies, duelling giants Airbus and Boeing gathered with more than 2,000 smaller aerospace suppliers to woo airlines at the first Le Bourget show since global economies began to recover from the financial crisis.
French-based Airbus, owned by European high-tech giant EADS, was flying high on the back of Asian orders for its new fuel-efficient A320neo worth more than $10 billion.
And the first day brought more good news for the company, with firm orders for 142 planes, most of them for the small but cutting edge A320neo, for an estimated total of (€10.5 billion ).
But Boeing also had a good opening, selling 22 planes for $3.435 billion.
The biggest customers were the giant US jet leasing firms ALC and Gecas, renewing their fleets, the Scandinavian SAS and fast-growing Gulf carriers Qatar and Saudi Airlines.
And the American firm scored a point when Qatar expressed its disappointment during the signing ceremony over Airbus’ two-year delay in its A350 long-haul carrier which the Gulf company has ordered in large numbers.
Airbus was put on the back foot when one of its flagship A380 superjumbos clipped a structure by the taxiway on arrival on Sunday, meaning it could not make the demonstration flights which provide the “wow factor” at the show. Honour was partly restored when a Korean Airlines A380 stepped up to perform a fly-past, its elegant sky-blue fuselage curving gracefully through the clouds over the historic airfield as thousands looked on in awe. Meanwhile, the world’s third largest planemaker, Embraer of Brazil, made a splash with orders worth €1.19 billion from airlines in Indonesia, Kazakhstan and Kenya for 39 of its 70-120 seat regional jets.
“It’s a truly remarkable achievement, given that we’ve reached 1,000 orders only seven years after our first delivery,” the company said.
Separately, ATR, a joint venture of EADS and Italy’s Alenia which produces regional jets, said US leasing giant GE Capital Aviation Services would buy 15 of its ATR 72-600 series and take an option on 15 more for $680 million.
Jim Albaugh, head of Boeing’s commercial aircraft operations, said the market was coming back strongly while noting that smaller firms from emerging countries such as China and Brazil were beginning to make an impact.
“Traffic is coming back in very strong fashion,” Mr Albaugh told a briefing, adding that the days of the Airbus-Boeing “duopoly” was over.
The stakes are high. Last week, Boeing said 33,500 planes worth €2.8 trillion would be needed over the next 20 years.
A list of the orders on the first day at a glance
Airbus:
60 A320neo aircraft, the updated and more efficient version of the workhorse A320 series, worth some $5.5 billion at list price.
36 A320neos plus 14 options for Aircraft Leasing Corporation which also ordered one A321 and 11 long-haul A330s in a deal that could be worth $6 billion.
30 A320neos for Scandinavia’s SAS Airlines, worth up to $2.8 billion.
Four A330-300s for Saudi Arabian Airlines, worth $800 million.
Boeing:
14 B737-800s worth $1.1 billion for Aircraft Leasing Corporation.
Two B747-8, the upgraded version of the original 747 jumbo jet aimed at the Airbus A380 superjumbo, with a list price of $635 million. Another client signed a commitment to buy another 15 of the aircraft.
Six B777-300ER for Qatar Airways worth $1.7 billion.
Embraer:
39 orders for its E-jet series of regional aircraft worth $1.7 billion
Bombardier:
10 CS100 regional jets worth more than $600 million.
ATR, a joint venture of EADS and Italy’s Alenia:
15 ATR 72-600 planes for leasing company GECAS worth some $340 million