By David Kaminski-Morrow in London

European airframer Airbus has accumulated orders for 117 aircraft and achieved deliveries of 219 over the first six months of this year.

It secured orders for 96 Airbus A320 family aircraft – the largest of which came from Indian Airlines which sealed an agreement for 43.

The remaining 21 orders for widebody types comprise five A330s, three A340-300s and 13 A350s. Airbus failed to log a single order for its A340-500/600 models.

While Boeing landed orders for three times as many aircraft – a total of 358 – just in the five months to the end of May, Airbus exceeded Boeing’s first-half delivery total of 195 aircraft.

Airbus delivered 170 A320-family aircraft and 49 widebodies. Boeing delivered 147 narrowbody 737s and 717s, as well as 48 widebodies – including 34 examples of its 777 twin-jet.

Despite the differences between the manufacturers’ figures, comparison of the two can be misleading because the disclosure of their first-half totals comes ahead of the Farnborough air show in the UK later this month, traditionally a showcase for unveiling high-profile orders.

Source: Flight International