PARIS AirShow 2011 (Update)

Day One:

June 21, 2011

Airbus bagged USD$14.4 billion of orders, outselling US rival Boeing's USD$9.3 billion on the first day of a Paris Air Show where bullish sentiment reigned.

Airbus dominated orders for single-aisle planes, the largest aircraft segment, luring airlines with a more fuel-efficient version of its top-selling A320 family as Boeing waits to decide whether to launch a completely new version of its competing 737 or to upgrade the existing model.

But Boeing outsold Airbus in the market for the more expensive long-haul planes, including for a new version of its most recognisable plane, the 747.

"The volume of orders today was large, underscoring the recovery in commercial aerospace," Alex Hamilton, aerospace analyst and managing director of EarlyBirdCapital, said at the Air Show.

Airbus believes it has the upper hand with the A320neo, whose more efficient engines save airlines 15 percent in fuel costs, according to the company.

Engine maker Pratt & Whitney chief executive David Hess said he expected an "astounding" amount of demand for the A320neo, while the minister responsible for the German civil aerospace industry, Peter Hintze, described it as a "trump card."

Analysts expect narrow-body planes, the backbone of the fast-growing budget airline market, to be a key battleground for orders between Airbus and Boeing at the biennial air show.

Airbus won orders for 60 narrow-body A320neo planes from the commercial aircraft leasing and financing arm of General Electric and for 30 from Scandinavian airline SAS, totalling USD$7.7 billion at list prices.

Air Lease signed a memorandum of understanding for 36 A320neo-family planes, and Qatar Airways also said it hoped to conclude a deal this week to buy A320neo planes.

Boeing conceded it might lose some custom while it ponders the future of its 737. The firm said on Sunday it would decide by year-end whether to upgrade the 737 with new engines from about 2016, as Airbus has done, or build a new jet in 2019.

Boeing upstaged Airbus with successes in other plane sizes, notching up USD$9.3 billion of orders, including for 17 of the latest version of its 747 from unidentified customers, as well as five 777s and four 787-9 Dreamliners from Air Lease.

Boeing also identified Gulf carrier Qatar Airways as the customer behind a previously revealed order for six 777-300ER wide-body jets worth USD$1.7 billion at list prices.

The news came a day after Airbus unveiled plans to boost the range of its future competing A350, for which Qatar is the biggest customer.

Airbus had been left red-faced following mishaps on the eve of the show, including a taxiway collision involving an A380 superjumbo. But it managed to scramble a Korean Air A380 to replace the damaged aircraft in aerial displays at the show.

The initial aircraft was hidden out of sight on Monday as President Nicolas Sarkozy inaugurated the show, and was a source of embarrassment for Airbus only hours after the arrival of its new competitor -- Boeing's 747-8 superjumbo, which is showing its distinctive silhouette abroad for the first time.

The jumbo touched down in orange and red "sunrise" livery symbolising the economic importance of Asia, with the additional orders unveiled on Monday rubbing salt into Airbus's wounds.

A second Airbus aircraft, the delayed European A400 airlifter, was also initially withdrawn from air display after a gearbox problem.

ASIAN DEMAND, RUSSIAN COMPETITION

Despite its setbacks, Airbus is confident of racking up orders for the A320neo, and the air show could bring two record deals in succession if its plans come to fruition.

A USD$16 billion provisional deal from IndiGo to buy 180 A320neo passenger jets, first announced in January, could be finalised, although talks may also drag beyond the air show.

If sealed, that would set a record for the number of planes in one transaction.

Sources close to the matter said that deal could be rapidly eclipsed by a 200-plane order being fine-tuned between Airbus and Malaysia's AirAsia.

Demand for aircraft is on a sharp rebound driven by rapidly growing demand from Asia and the Middle East.

"Those two markets will enjoy at least one-third if not more of the demand increase for global air traffic in the next decade," said Philip Toy, a managing director at Alix Partners.

Airbus sales chief John Leahy said on Monday he expected to sell more planes this year than in 2010, though he declined to give an estimated figure.

"We are working a lot and it looks like it's coming together to be a very big show," Leahy told reporters.

Russia and China will flex their muscles as potential rivals to Airbus and Boeing, especially during a Tuesday visit by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, and some analysts expect surprise sales.

But Western plane makers say it will be some time before newcomers mount a serious challenge in civil aerospace.

Brazilian group Embraer also made its presence felt, saying it had won orders for its 190 regional jets.

(Reuters)

Day Two:

June 22, 2011
Airbus dominated the Paris Air Show on Tuesday with a stream of new orders for its fuel-efficient A320neo and hammered out a long-awaited final deal with an Indian airline that will set a new record in terms of numbers of planes sold.

Indian budget carrier IndiGo is set to unveil on Wednesday the USD$16 billion order for 180 Airbus aircraft, the biggest boost to date for the revamped A320neo.

The increase in oil prices this year has helped spur a rush of orders for more fuel-efficient aircraft at the show, giving a boost to Airbus's revamped A320neo passenger jet.

But this has increased pressure on rival Boeing and limited scope for newcomers Russia and China.

European plane maker Airbus notched up USD$25.9 billion of orders by the second day, outselling Boeing's USD$19.1 billion. Early on Tuesday, the Airbus sales chief said it had 544 commitments for its new A320 aircraft, including a memorandum of understanding with leasing company CIT for 50.

The healthy demand from buyers has provided evidence that a solid upswing in civil aviation is underway, powered by emerging markets in Asia. High fuel prices have also given buyers a new sense of urgency to buy fuel-efficient planes.

"It highlights the pressure that mature airlines are under to make themselves more efficient and have up-to-date aircraft," said Howard Wheeldon, senior strategist at London brokerage BGC Partners.

China and Russia are under the spotlight at the show as they try to enter the market for passenger jets with more than 100 seats. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited the show on Tuesday to tout his country's aerospace industry.

More established newcomers from Brazil and Canada, are also edging into Airbus and Boeing territory by building planes with 120-130 seats in additional to regional jets.

Long-time rivals Boeing and Airbus are locked in a strategy battle over the huge market for single-aisle aircraft. These narrow-body planes, the backbone of the fast-growing budget airline market, are set to be the main battleground for orders between Airbus and Boeing at the biennial show.

Airbus is marketing a revamped version of its A320 and Boeing is holding back on deciding whether to upgrade or redesign its 737 passenger jet, the best-selling plane in aviation history.

"I think it is going to be a different conversation at the end of the week, depending on what Airbus achieves this week in terms of orders for the neo," Henri Courpron, chief executive of International Finance Lease Corporation, the world's largest aircraft leasing company said.

Airbus believes it has the upper hand with the A320neo, whose more efficient engines save airlines 15 percent in fuel costs, according to the company.

Boeing conceded it might lose some custom while it ponders the future of its 737. The firm said on Sunday it would decide by year-end on its new strategy.

EMERGING PLAYERS

Moscow is pushing for Russian companies to up their spending on research and development as the government tries to diversify the economy away from oil and gas and resources.

Russian plane maker Sukhoi is to bring a business jet version of its regional airliner to the market, showing the country's intent to make an impact on the international aircraft business.

Sukhoi has signed a memorandum of understanding to sell 12 of its Superjet 100 mid-size aircraft to Indonesia's Sky Aviation, a spokeswoman said.

SuperJet International is a joint venture between Italian Finmeccanica's Alenia and Sukhoi. "We are targeting a market of between 80 and 100 aircraft over the next 20 years," SuperJet International CEO Carlo Logli said.

China has come to the show for the first time with a model of its own passenger jet.

Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac) expects to have its C919 aircraft up and running by 2014 with first deliveries two years later.

The plane could eventually rival Airbus's A320 and Boeing's 737 in the short- and medium-haul market. It has signed a deal with budget carrier Ryanair for aircraft development.

Brazil's Embraer, the leader in the regional jet market, sees "good chances" of firm orders from US carrier Delta Air Lines.

"Our expectation is that Delta decides about all this in October... they are in talks with everyone," Paulo Cesar de Souza e Silva, who heads Embraer's commercial aviation unit, said at the show.

Canada's Bombardier has announced a provisional order for up to 30 of its CSeries aircraft worth close to USD$2 billion.

(Reuters)

This is FACT SHEET (so far) from Paris Air Show.

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