Airbus wraps up Farnborough Thursday with 62 aircraft sales, bringing company's show total to 123

FARNBOROUGH, England, 12 July 2012. European aircraft giant Airbus in Toulouse, France, made up for lost time Thursday at the Farnborough International Airshow in Farnborough, England, by taking orders and options for 62 aircraft, bringing the Airbus total aircraft sales at Farnborough by late Thursday to 123.

By Thursday afternoon, the last business day at Farnborough during which nearly aircraft sales are concluded, Airbus Farnborough sales still stood far behind archrival Boeing, which as of late Thursday had sold 267 aircraft during and immediately prior to the air show. Boeing remained quiet through mid-afternoon Thursday.

Airbus began the day Thursday by signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Middle East Airlines-Air Liban (MEA), the flag carrier of Lebanon, for five A320neo and five A321neo next-generation fuel-efficient aircraft, as well as for eight options on A320neo-family aircraft.

MEA will announce its engine choice at a later date. The A320neo family offers a choice of engines among CFM International LEAP-X or the Pratt & Whitney PW1100G PurePower engines. The A320neo family of twin-engine, single-aisle airliners is scheduled to enter service in late 2015. MEA operates one of the most modern fleets in the Middle East region with four A330-200s, four A321s and nine A320s, Airbus officials say.

Also on Thursday Airbus took 20 firm orders from UTair one of Russia’s leading air carriers, for 20 A321 aircraft during the Farnborough Air Show. This is the largest order for the type received from a carrier in the region and the first time that UTair has ordered Airbus aircraft, Airbus officials say.

UTair’s A321s will feature a single-class cabin layout seating 220 passengers on the airline's charter network of popular leisure destinations.

Next up for Airbus on Thursday was Synergy Aerospace in Bogotá, Colombia, a holding company that operates the South American airline AviancaTaca. Synergy ordered nine Airbus A330 long-range widebody airliners, including six A330-200 passenger and three A330-200 freighter aircraft. Engine choice will be announced at a later date.

The A330 family spans 250 to 300 seats and includes freighter, VIP, and military transport/tanker variants, with maximum ranges of more than 4,000 nautical miles.

Finally on Thursday, Airbus signed an MOU with aircraft leasing company Avolon in Dublin for 15 A320neo aircraft. Avolon becomes a new customer for the A320neo, and will make its engine selection later. This commitment follows a firm order for eight current-generation A320s made in December 2010 and brings Avolon’s total orders for Airbus single-aisle aircraft to 23, Airbus officials say.

The A320neo is a new engine option for the A320 Family entering into service from 2015 and incorporates new engines and large sharklet wingtips to deliver 15 percent in fuel savings, Airbus officials say.

More than 8,500 A320 Family aircraft have been ordered, Airbus officials say, and 37 of those A320neo sales came at Farnborough. Thursday's transactions wrap-up the Airbus involvement at Farnborough, having sold 115 aircraft worth about $16.9 billion, company officials say.

The Military & Aerospace Electronics unofficial Farnborough aircraft sales count has Airbus sales during the show at 123.

For more information contact Airbus online at www.airbus.com, or the Farnborough International Airshow at www.farnborough.com. Also follow Military & Aerospace Electronics and Avionics Intelligence daily Farnborough show coverage online at www.militaryaerospace.com/farnborough-report.

Follow Military & Aerospace Electronics and Avionics Intelligence news updates on Twitter