FlightGlobal's Order Tracker provides regularly updated details of all the firm and LoI commercial air transport announcements made during this year's Farnborough air show
Aside from an AirAsia-fuelled jump on the second day, order activity at this year’s show was much lower than the deal announcements frenzies of recent years.
IAG today converted two options on Airbus A330s for its Irish carrier Aer Lingus to take order commitments - both firm and tentative - to 607. There were also 135 options, taking the overall order commitments for Farnborough this year to 742.
That compares to the 1,223 commitments - including 224 options - announced at last year's Paris air show. The previous Farnborough air show in 2014 was similarly busy, generating 1,210 announcement including 204 options.
Direct comparison of show order announcements does come with a few caveats, however. For example, both totals feature the 62-strong A320neo commitment from Synergy Aerospace for its Avianca Brazil unit, as the MoU was first announced at Paris in 2015 and then confirmed as a firm order during Farnborough this year.
AIRBUS
Airbus secured the two biggest commitments, both from Asian low-cost operators. AirAsia signed a firm order for 100 Airbus A321neos, and will equip the jets with a high-density 240-seat layout. AirAsia again selected CFM International engines for these aircraft. The airline has also taken another 100 options.
Indian low-cost carrier GoAir signed a memorandum of understanding with Airbus for 72 A320neos, doubling its commitment to the type. The aircraft covered by the new MoU would be due for delivery between 2020 and 2025. GoAir is still to make an engine selection.
Airbus highlights 197 firm orders in its end-of-show round up – all but 10 of which were A320-family jets – although firm order announcements made during the show from Airbus covered 208 aircraft. These covered several orders which had already been listed in Airbus’s backlog, attributed to unidentified customers, including Air Lease’s three A350-900s, Arkia’s A330neos, Wow Air’s A321neos and the A320neo for Air Cote d’Ivoire
The new firm aircraft orders include Avianca Brazil parent Synergy Aerospace firming its MoU for 62 A320neo family aircraft and 25 A320neo aircraft from Germania.
Widebody orders announced during the show include Virgin Atlantic’s deal for eight A350-1000s – it will also take four more from Air Lease – and Aer Lingus firming two A330s.
Another 82 aircraft – all from the A320 family – were the subject of memoranda of understanding, and yet to be included in the firm order total.
BOEING
Boeing disclosed 178 order commitments - or 182 including the four 747-8 Freighters already delivered to Volga Dnepr - plus one option from TUI for a 787
Analysis of the US airframer’s figures for activity at the show indicates that Boeing secured new firm orders for 20 aircraft, including seven 787-9s and 13 737 Max 8s, from TUI Group, Ruili Airlines and Air Lease.
Another 42 aircraft, a mix of 737-800s and Max 8s, were orders which Boeing had previously attributed to four unidentified customers.
It revealed these customers as Air Europa, EgyptAir, Air Lease, and Standard Chartered Bank.
The balance of 120 aircraft – five 787-9s, 20 747-8Fs, and 95 737s – were the subject of commitments from five customers, four of them Chinese.
Russian outsize freight specialist Volga-Dnepr’s AirBridgeCargo division accounted for the 747-8Fs, under a pact which Boeing describes simply as an “agreement”. That covered 20 aircraft in total, but four of them have already been delivered.
Accounting for all business, including previously unattributed orders, preliminary deals and options, Airbus outlined business for 405 aircraft compared with 179 for Boeing. The vast majority of Airbus business, covering all but 15 commitments, was for narrowbodies. Boeing though did beat its European rival on widebodies, announcing 29 deals.
REGIONALS
In the regional sector Comac disclosed commitments for 90 ARJ21 regional jets from two Chinese lessors, with both deals targeted at putting the Chinese aircraft with foreign customers. One agreement involves a tripartite collaborative framework between Comac, China Aircraft Leasing (CALC) and Friedmann Pacific Asset Management. Under this deal, CALC will purchase 60 ARJ21-700s to support Friedmann's newly bought Indonesian airline and build its fleet around Comac aircraft.
In a separate signing, AVIC Leasing inked for 30 ARJ21s.
Mitsubishi Aircraft attracted its first European customer, with Swedish lessor Rockton signing a letter of intent that covers a firm order for 10 MRJ90s plus options on an additional 10.
Four operators have separately placed commitments with Embraer for a total of 25 E-Jets, most of them from the re-engined second generation of the regional jet family. That includes Arkia’s tentative deal for six for six E195-E2s and Indonesian regional Kalstar’s firm orders for five E190-E2s. Nordic Aviation Capital has ordered four E190s and Japan Air Lines has converted a previous option for an E170 to a firm E190 order.
Canadian regional Porter Airlines meanwhile ordered three Bombardier Q400s.
One noticeable difference from recent years is the relatively quiet show activity by aircraft lessors during Farnborough. Lessors accounted for less than a fifth of orders and options disclosed over the first three days of the show, compared with 31% at Paris last year and over half at Farnborough in 2014.
Total business at the show, based on Flight Ascend’s 2016 Full-Life Base values is almost $39 billion, compared with around $69 billion at the Paris air show last year.
Asia-Pacific accounted for two-thirds of the aircraft announcements made during the show, for which operators are known. That was driven not only by the large orders from Malaysian carrier AirAsia and Indian operator GoAir, but also by the series of deals Boeing announced for Chinese airlines during the show. At Paris air show last year the region’s operators had accounted for half the commitments during the show.
Get all the coverage from Farnborough air show on our dedicated landing page
This story has been updated to correct the designation of the aircraft ordered by Kalstar
Source: Cirium Dashboard
