LE BOURGET, France — Airbus CEO Tom Enders was in high spirits on Friday, saying the unexpected crop of orders won at the Paris Air Show shows that the heart of the aviation industry is still beating despite the recession.
Unlike archrival Boeing Co. — which managed a single order for two planes worth a paltry $153 million — the European planemaker chalked up firm orders for 58 planes worth $6.4 billion over five days, mostly from Asian and budget airlines.
Including commitments — when customers make a deposit but the sale is not legally binding — Airbus signed deals worth $12.9 billion for 127 planes.
Enders said Airbus “didn’t expect” such a score.
“I think it’s a good sign for the entire industry,” he said in a interview. “It’s a good sign that aviation is not collapsing, that there is not doom and gloom all over.”
Not collapsing perhaps, but not brimming with confidence either.
The International Air Transport Association estimates the world’s airlines will collectively lose $9 billion this year and face a slow recovery as the economic crisis saps air travel and cargo demand.
Leahy said the air show orders suggest “we are bouncing along the bottom” — although “I don’t think this necessarily means that we are in full recovery mode yet.”
He said Airbus’ target of capturing 300 orders this year “didn’t look too accurate a couple of weeks ago” but is now “perhaps achievable.”
Boeing tried to shrug off Airbus’ better success with orders during the week, saying the company doesn’t save up orders to announce at air shows.
But its year-to-date tally also tails Airbus.
Boeing’s orders on June 16 totaled 76 planes this year, but with 66 cancellations its net score falls to just 10.
Before the show, Airbus had 11 net orders and 32 gross orders. It’s new net score is 69.
Diogenis Papiomytis, an aerospace analyst with Frost &Sullivan in London, attributed Airbus’ performance to its success selling its cash cow, the single-aisle A320, to regional carriers such as Hungary’s Wizz Air and Philippines low-cost airline Cebu Pacific.
Leahy said that despite the economic climate “pricing is essentially the same” as last year, denying that he is offering steep discounts to lure cash strapped airlines.
On the fifth day of the show, which opened to the public on Friday and runs through Sunday, Airbus announced another two deals, both memorandums of understanding.
Airbus said Indian airline Paramount Airways agreed to buy 10 A321 planes, each worth $90.3 million at list prices. The deal also includes an option for an additional 10 jets.
And in a last minute deal, inked as Leahy was leaving the show, Turkish Airlines agreed to acquire seven widebody A330s, including five A330-300s and two A330-200s, worth a total of $1.3 billion at list prices.
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