Both Boeing Co. and Airbus SE came away from the 2018 Farnborough International Airshow with orders for hundreds of new aircraft and billions of dollars in potential revenue, though the edge in this round of the rivalry will go to Boeing, which announced a total of 728 new orders and commitments during the event. Airbus reported orders for 431 new aircraft.
The biannual event draws aircraft and aerospace OEMs and suppliers, as well as the public, to the Farnborough Airport in England.
Boeing reported the new orders and commitments it collected during the Airshow total $98.4 billion for commercial aircraft and $2.1 billion for commercial and defense services orders and agreements. "We will continue to win in the marketplace thanks to our talented team, who innovate across our enterprise with One Boeing collaboration and deliver on our proven portfolio with relentless customer focus," stated Boeing president and CEO Dennis Muilenburg.
Among Boeing’s commercial aircraft orders are 564 for the single-aisle 737 MAX; 52 for the long-range 787 Dreamliner; 48 for the long-range 777F; and five for the wide-body 747-8F cargo aircraft.
The Airbus results at Farnborough totaled 431 commercial jets, including 60 A220-300s; 304 A320 aircraft; 42 A330neos; and 25 A350 XWBs. “Our year to date and our end-of-show commitments confirm the strong market appetite for all our leading aircraft product families,” according to a statement by Eric Schulz, Airbus chief commercial officer.
“I am especially pleased about the strong response that our wide-body family is enjoying. Over 150 orders and commitments for our A330/A350/A380 offerings in 2018 are a strong endorsement.”
Both OEMs released new 20-year market forecasts during the Farnborough Air Show. Boeing’s updated outlook predicts market demand for 42,730 commercial jets with 90-plus seats by 2037, a total market demand of $6.3 trillion. Airbus predicts market demand at $4.6 trillion through the same period, 2018-2037.
