Airbus has had its best-ever start to a year in sales terms, booking 238 orders in January helped on by the firming up of a major contract from China announced last year for 110 A320s.
After the record-breaking performance by Airbus and Boeing in 2007, the European airframer has forecast that there will be a significant reduction in orders this year, with chief operating officer customers John Leahy indicating that he expects to accrue no more than around 700 orders in total. So the strong January performance puts Airbus well on its way to its full-year sales forecast.
 |
|---|
© Airbus |
Airbus booked 210 narrowbody and 28 widebody gross orders during January, while its rival's 65 order total was split 22/43 (including 40 787s). Last year Boeing outsold Airbus in net terms, with 1,413 orders against 1,341 for its rival.
Airbus's major narrowbody order came from China Aviation Supplies Import and Export Group (CASGC), which has placed a firm order for 110 A320s. These aircraft will be distributed among the country's carriers. Airbus also booked an order for 75 A320s from lessor AWAS.
According to Flight's ACAS database, the 238 orders are the highest-ever for Airbus in the first month of the year. The previous highest for a January was in 1987, when the airframer secured 106 orders.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
