Airlines order big in Paris
June 17, 2013
Airbus has received provisional orders for 20 A380 double-decker superjumbo planes from aircraft leasing group Doric, the European planemaker announced at the Le Bourget Air Show, which started near Paris on Monday.
The deal would be worth about $8 billion (6 billion euros) according to Airbus catalogue prices. Airlines, however, are usually granted discounts for such big deals, substantially reducing the prices actually paid.
Airbus also said US-based leasing group ILFC had stocked up a previous order for 100 new fuel-efficient A320neo airliners by 50 planes, adding another $5 billion to its bill.
In addition, German national carrier Lufthansa said negotiations for 100 medium-range Airbus A320 aircraft had been finalized. The order was worth about 10 billion euros at list prices and was part of a Lufthansa program to modernize its fleet.
On Monday, Airbus rival Boeing also landed major deals with a number of airlines and aircraft leasing firms. The US planemaker said orders were primarily for its next-generation 787 Dreamliner, its new 737 MAX and its current 777 long-haul plane model.
Leasing firm GECAS, Boeing said, had ordered 10 Dreamliners worth about $2.9 billion, while Qatar had bought two 777s and had placed orders for an additional seven planes. Firm orders for four 737 MAX aircraft were put down by Japan's Skymark Airlines
Boeing and Airbus traditionally compete for the highest number of orders at the Paris Air Show. At last year's Farnborough show in the UK, Boeing was able to steal a march on Airbus as it secured orders worth about $35.5 billion - more than double the amount of Airbus' haul.
uhe/dr (AFP, dpa)