Airbus Gains Edge in Sales at Air Show
The intense air show rivalry between Airbus Industrie and Boeing Co. tilted toward the Europeans early Wednesday, with Airbus announcing $4 billion in new jetliner orders and $3 billion more in options.
Boeing bounced back with orders for airplanes that list at about $2.3 billion.
But after most of the new airplane deals apparently had been unveiled at the Farnborough International 98 air show, it appeared that Airbus had landed the biggest share of business at the industry’s top event of the year--including a major new deal with United Parcel Service.
Atlanta-based UPS ordered 30 A300FR-600R cargo jets and took options on 30 more in a package priced at around $5 billion if it takes all of the planes. The order, the biggest deal announced so far at the air show, was UPS’ first purchase from the European consortium.
Airbus Chief Executive Noel Forgeard was all smiles as he unveiled the deal with UPS and another with U.S. leasing company General Electric Capital Aviation Services, a subsidiary of GE Capital.
The big U.S. purchasers are becoming increasingly aware that it doesn’t matter where their airplanes are made, Forgeard told reporters in a thinly concealed swipe at his competitor, Seattle-based Boeing.
GE Capital placed firm orders for 30 Airbus A320 series planes and options for 10 more in a deal worth up to $2 billion, Airbus said.
Boeing had a somewhat slower day, at a show where much attention has been focused on its recent assembly line problems and a management shake-up.
One of Boeing’s more colorful deals was a memorandum of understanding--not a firm order--to sell one big 747-400 to a start-up Sri Lankan carrier called PeaceAir that plans, among other things, to fly religious pilgrims to holy sites.
But Boeing also landed $1.67 billion in jet orders from GE Capital--which is taking 12 of Boeing’s long-haul 767 models. Boeing also said it sold five 737-800s in a deal listed at about $255 million to the San Francisco aircraft leasing company GATX Capital Corp.
Boeing said earlier it had gotten five new orders for 737s from Scandinavian Airlines System, which also is converting 11 options into firm orders in a $600-million deal. Boeing also sold one 737 to a small Greek carrier, Cronus Airlines, which took an option on another 737 as well.
Airbus announced firm new orders for planes with a list value totaling $6.7 billion in the first three days of the show, along with options on more planes with an asking price of $4.5 billion.
Boeing’s firm orders came close to $5.2 billion--with about $1 billion more in options, a spokesman said.
