Mumbai:
Airbus SAS, which
is struggling to hold its lead over US rival Boeing Co., won $27 billion in orders
and commitments from US Airways Group and Qatar Airways, at the Paris Air Show.Qatar''s
order includes 80 A350 XWB airliners and three double-decker A380s, Airbus chief
executive Louis Gallois said at the Paris Air Show. Airbus
also won a commitment from Emirates, Middle East ''s largest airline, to buy eight
A380s valued at $2.55 billion. A
final purchase would take Emirates'' total order for the double-decker plane to
55. The A350
deals are a boost for Airbus in the most lucrative segment of the $60 billion-a-year
commercial aircraft market, medium-sized long-range jets. Airbus had 13 orders
for the A350 before the start of the show. Boeing
has received 584 orders for its 787 Dreamliner, which enters service in 2008.
The Qatar A350s
are worth $16 billion at catalog prices. The three
superjumbos take the total order value to $17 billion at list prices. Emirates
expects the A380 to bring fuel savings of between 15 per cent and 18 per cent
compared with a Boeing 777-300, its president Tim Clark said.
|
