Let the games begin!
Day One of the Paris Air Show, and aircraft orders are pouring in. By the end of the day, thirteen airlines, five lessors, and one government had signed firm orders or letters of intent to purchase 407 commercial jets, regional jets, and turboprops.
Of interest to the readers of Cargo Facts, thirteen of the orders were for freighters, with Qatar Airways ordering four 777Fs and EVA Airways signing an LOI for five 777Fs. In addition, the government of Qatar signed an order for four Boeing C-17 military transports. (We note that the Qatar Airways 777F order is the firming of an LOI placed some time ago.)
As can be seen in the chart showing commercial jet orders, Airbus wound up with 145 orders and commitments, while Boeing received 83. Interestingly, the airbus orders were heavily weighted toward its narrowbodies, with the company taking orders for ninety-four A320 Family aircraft (both neo and ceo), but just fifty-one for its widebody offerings. Boeing, on the other hand, saw its widebody order book swell faster than the narrowbody order book.
Not shown in the chart are orders and commitments for 179 regional jets, turboprops, and Comac’s new C919 narrowbody.
We will update the orders race over the coming days. We expect that in addition to the usual production aircraft orders, there will be big news on the passenger-to-freighter conversion front, as well.
To learn more about freighter fleet dynamics, click here.
