A staggering $23.4 billion worth of orders makes Farnborough '98 the greatest air show in history. It just about doubled the 1996 figure - itself a record.

David Marshall, director-general of organisers SBAC said yesterday: "It was an extremely successful show and the orders announced break anybody's records. Everyone thought the talking point would be European rationalisation, but the scale of the orders overwhelmed everything else.

"My feeling now is that everyone is having a good show and everyone is upbeat. Certainly the UK has come through in everyone's minds as a very central part of the global aerospace industry."

Source: Flight Daily News