This week’s Farnborough air show follows one of the busiest events for aircraft order announcements at the Paris equivalent last year.
There were 1,266 aircraft commitments announced at Le Bourget last summer. The majority, 1,170, covered firm orders – although 88 of these were already attributed in the airframer backlogs to undisclosed customers.
Indian airlines drove the bulk of this as Indigo struck a deal for 500 Airbus A320neo family jets. The order announcements also included Air India firming its February commitment for 470 aircraft – a mix of narrowbodies and widebodies from Airbus and Boeing — together with options on 70 more units.
By contrast the previous Farnborough air show in 2022 – the first one held after the pandemic – had been relatively quiet for deals, with business covering 441 aircraft announced.
While the firming of previously announced commitments or announcements of preliminary commitments cloud the precise amount of new orders booked during Farnborough, it is usually indicative of wider business. Airbus, for example, logged a record 2,094 net orders in 2023, while Boeing net orders for that year climbed 70% to 1,314.
Korean Air is among those airlines tipped to potentially strike an order at the Farnborough show this week; Reuters reporting earlier this month that the SkyTeam carrier could seal a deal for between 20-30 Boeing 777Xs.
Other announcements may see Cebu Pacific firm its recently announced preliminary deal for up to 152 Airbus A321neos during the show, while Bloomberg last month reported Qatar Airways – a regular fixture at the air shows over the years – could close a 200-strong widebody order split between Airbus Boeing this week.
The show could also be apt timing for announcements from Riyadh Air and Turkish Airlines, both of whom have trailed potential orders over the past 12 months.
The Saudi start-up aims to launch flights next year – having already ordered Boeing 787s – and has been teasing for over a year that it is close to a major narrowbody order. Turkish Airlines meanwhile, having firmed the Airbus portion of a major fleet renewal plan under which it will double its fleet by 2033, is still to finalise a planned deal covering Boeing aircraft.
AIRBUS AHEAD AT HALFWAY STAGE
So far this year Airbus is leading rival Boeing in terms of net orders booked.
Over the first half of the year Airbus secured 310 net orders. These include 130 widebody aircraft and 192 A320neo-family jets, although the A220 ends the half-year without orders, and a net deficit of 12 aircraft after cancellations.
Since then, UK leisure carrier Jet2 exercised rights for 36 more Airbus A321neos
Boeing actually logged negative order activity in June due to moving orders for 116 aircraft out of its backlog and into a special accounting bucket reserved for deals the company suspects may not actually close.
Exactly why Boeing shifted the 116 orders – which included deals for 114 737s and two 777s – from its backlog into the accounting bucket called ASC-606 remains unclear.
Boeing typically places orders within the bucket when circumstances – such as a buyer’s financial condition or intention to cancel orders – make the deals less than iron-clad. Boeing notes that orders within ASC-606 remain under firm contracts.
In addition to the accounting adjustments, cancellations in June have left Boeing with only 26 net orders for the first half. At the gross level, the airframer booked 156 orders during the period, including 101 for the 737 Max family. Widebody activity accounts for the remainder, including commitments for a total of 30 777Xs.
However, since then and ahead of the show Boeing disclosed a deal for five 777Fs from Emirates and a repeat order from lessor Aviation Capital Group for 35 737 Max jets.
