Airbus Leads Boeing In First-Half Orders

Airbus leads Boeing in orders in the first half of this year, after a tight contest at last month's Paris Air Show.

Airbus said it had won orders for 382 aircraft in the first six months of the year and delivered 304 planes to customers.

After cancellations and conversions between models, net orders were 348 aircraft, it said.

Boeing won orders for 325 aircraft during the period, or a net total of 281 after the same adjustments.

It delivered 381 aircraft in the first half, maintaining a lead over Airbus on on deliveries.

At the Paris Air Show, Airbus lagged Boeing in firm orders but upstaged its rival with a last-minute USD$14 billion provisional order for 100 planes from Wizz Air.

Airbus reported 124 firm orders worth USD$16.3 billion at the June 15-21 event, as well as 297 commitments worth USD$40.7 billion.

Boeing reported 154 firm orders worth USD$20.2 billion at the show, plus 177 commitments worth USD$30 billion.

The Airbus order summary for June showed that half of the orders for six planes placed by Tunisian carrier Syphax Airlines had been cancelled, highlighting challenges facing the country's tourism sector even before last month's deadly hotel attack in the resort of Sousse.