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Qatar Airways' jet order gives Airbus a boost

Airbus came out fighting on the first day of the Paris Air Show, saying it has won enough orders to launch its mid-sized A350 jet after beating the rival Boeing 787 to a 60-plane deal with Qatar Airways.

After a run of bad news for the European plane maker, Qatar Airways announced that it chose to buy up to 60 A350s instead of Boeing's "Dreamliner."

Although the Doha-based carrier also said it plans to buy at least 20 Boeing 777s, the A350 announcement is a major boost for Airbus and a blow to Chicago-based Boeing Co -- which had hoped Qatar would add to the 266 Dreamliner orders already on its books.

Before the Qatar deal, which has yet to be finalized, Airbus had announced just 10 nonbinding A350 orders from Spanish carrier Air Europa. Boeing's claims -- that the A350, derived from the existing A330, was no match for its all-new jet -- were gaining credibility.

Confidence

But Qatar's order was seen as a vote of confidence in the latest, improved design for the Airbus jet, which now includes more lightweight composites than originally promised.

"It's certainly a well-needed morale boost for the A350 program," said Jon Kutler, head of the US aerospace consulting group Jefferies Quarterdeck.

Airbus chief executive Noel Forgeard said the Qatari deal means he now has "more than enough" orders to launch the plane.

Airbus still has to clinch more deals if it's to deliver on chief commercial officer John Leahy's earlier pledge to unveil more than 100 new A350 orders at the show.

Leahy said on Monday the total order book stands at 90, including the Air Europa deal and 20 more commitments from US Airways -- which are subject to the completion of its planned merger with America West Holdings Corp.

US Airways said last month it had struck a deal with Airbus to become the launch customer for the A350 in return for a US$250 million loan from the Toulouse, France-based plane maker.

Boeing deal

Meanwhile, Boeing said at the Paris air show yesterday that Indian airline Jet Airways had signed a letter of intent to buy 10 long-range Boeing 777 airliners and 10 single-corridor 737 aircraft.

At list prices, the orders were worth about US$2.8 billion, a Boeing spokesman said.

Jet Airways said that the order broke down into orders for six long-distance 777-200 LR aircraft, four long-distance 777-300 ER plans and 10 new-version single corridor aircraft of the 737-800 series.

The letter of intent was linked to options to buy 10 more of the 777 airliners, the statement said.

More than 200 planes and helicopters are on display at Le Bourget, the aerospace industry's biggest gathering, alongside aeronautical and military hardware from 41 countries.

The clear star of the show is the Airbus A380 "superjumbo," the world's largest passenger plane, which took part in a display flight before French President Jacques Chirac. The 555-seater, set to fly every day at its first air show appearance, made its maiden flight in April.

Air show organizers are expecting a total of 300,000 visitors throughout the week, which opened to the public for its last three days. It closes tomorrow.
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