Airbus said on Wednesday it has received $5.3 billion in orders and letters of intent for new aircraft at the Dubai Airshow, while rival Boeing announced two orders for less than $800 million. “We had a good airshow, better than many expected,” said Airbus chief operating officer John Leahy in a statement released a day before the biennial show ends, with overall sales down sharply on 2007. The Airbus orders were for 15 aircraft worth more than $3.6 billion, in addition to memorandums of understanding on another 18 valued at around $1.7 billion. The largest came from Ethiopian Airlines for 12 A350-900s worth $2.9 billion, while Air Austral ordered two A380 superjumbos worth $655 million. Swiss-based charter airline Comlux placed a firm order for one Airbus Corporate Jet (ACJ) worth $75 million. Meanwhile, Airbus signed an MoU to supply Yemenia Airlines with 10 A320s worth $770 million, and an MoU with Senegal Airlines for two A320s and two A330-200s valued at $670 million. An MoU was also signed with Nepal Airlines for one A320 and one A330-200 worth $258 million. Arch-rival Boeing received orders from the Algerian national carrier Air Algerie for seven Boeing B737-800s. The price was not disclosed, but it should range between $493 million and $553 million according to catalogue prices. Boeing also confirmed an order for four B737s by the Algerian domestic carrier Tassili Airlines, valued at $228.4 million. Sales are sharply lower for the two companies that than in 2007, when they received orders and letters of intent worth around $75 billion, mostly from Gulf carriers. Show organizers said on Wednesday that orders by the next to last day have exceeded $13 billion - way below $155.5 billion in 2007. Leahy warned that the aviation industry is still struggling to overcome the impact of the global financial crisis. “Our industry is not out of the woods yet. There will be a difficult winter ahead of us,” he said. “But with the deals we made in Dubai and the interest in our products that we saw here, spring may not be that far away,” he added. Separately, Airbus said Wednesday it agreed to sell six jetliners to newly created Senegal Airlines, giving the European plane maker bragging rights to more than $5 billion worth of orders at a subdued Dubai Airshow. A slumping aviation market stemming from the economic downturn has kept Airbus and its US rival Boeing Co. from announcing any of the blockbuster deals seen at the last Dubai show two years ago, though both have benefited from the modest expansion plans of growing airlines in the developing world. Senegal Airlines' deal was a letter of intent – effectively a promise to buy – four A320 and two A330 planes. Airbus valued the deal at $670 million, though buyers typically negotiate discounts below the list price. Altogether, Airbus aid it signed more than $5.3 billion in deals over the first four days of the weeklong show. That figure includes $3.6 billion in firm orders, and another $1.7 billion for 18 planes covered by the type of Senegal deal.
