TOULOUSE, France – Airbus landed the first firm contract for an updated version of its best-selling A320 aircraft from low-cost carrier Virgin America, helping push the European plane maker's 2010 orders past those of US rival Boeing Co.
The contract, signed Dec. 29, is for 30 of the New Engine Option version of the A320, which Airbus is touting for its greater fuel efficiency and reduced emissions, and for 30 of the current version of the popular single-aisle jetliner.
The deal boosted Airbus's orders for the year, before cancellations, to 644 planes, with a catalog value of $85 billion, exceeding Boeing's 625 aircraft, with a list price of $70 billion.
After cancellations, Airbus won orders for 574 aircraft, compared with 530 for Boeing. A year ago, when the world economy looked much shakier, Airbus forecast orders of just 300 planes for 2010. The European Aeronautic Defense & Space Co. unit delivered 510 planes during the year, its highest total ever, while Boeing delivered 462.
This year, however, Boeing is likely to be buoyed by sizable orders from China, which the US expects to be the centerpiece of a package of US-China deals timed to this week's summit meeting between US President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao.
Airbus's contract with Virgin America is valued at $5.1 billion at catalog prices, though big buyers typically receive substantial discounts. The contract stemmed from a push by Airbus to sign deals for more than 200 planes last month. At the end of November, Airbus's orders lagged behind Boeing's.
"We use the end of the year as a deadline. That forces orders to close," said John Leahy, Airbus chief operating officer for customers. He said that on average, 23% of Airbus's orders are signed in December.
Without commenting directly Airbus's 2010 performance, a Boeing official said Boeing was happy with its own order book. "We exceeded our order expectation significantly last year," said Randy Tinseth, vice president for marketing at Boeing's commercial airplanes unit. "We continue to see that duopoly at the top of the market, and over the past five years we've had a few more orders, and they've had a few more deliveries."
Virgin America's order for the A320 NEO, which Airbus started selling last month, preceded Airbus's disclosure last week of a preliminary deal for Indian budget carrier IndiGo to buy 150 of the new model.
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