Exec: Airbus unlikely to meet 2009 jet order goal

The top sales executive for Airbus isn’t betting the European jet maker will bring in 300 aircraft orders this year as previously predicted.

Airbus’ John Leahy told reporters Monday that if the company’s current order trend holds, Airbus won’t reach its goal of landing 300 new orders this year.

Boeing’s rival Airbus has booked 30 new jet orders through the end of April but has 19 order cancellations for a net of 11.

Although Boeing had more gross orders (58) than Airbus as of May 5, the Chicago-based company’s cancellations (59) outweigh its new orders. Boeing’s order total sits at negative one.

Scott Carson, Boeing’s president of Commercial Airplanes, had said earlier this year that he thought the company would deliver more aircraft than book new orders. Boeing intends to deliver 480 to 485 planes in 2009.

Airbus’ Leahy said the company could lose 12 to 13 percent of its commercial backlog, reports Reuters. He predicts that 2011 will be a year of recovery during which Airbus may revive its plan to turn out 40 A320s monthly. Last year, Airbus scrapped a plan to go from 36 to 40. The European company said it will scale production down to 34 in October.

EADS, the parent company of Airbus, plans to announce its first quarter earnings tomorrow. Analysts predict that EADS net profit will be down 30 percent from last year.