A late surge in new airliner orders during December took Airbus’s sales tally for 2010 to 644 aircraft (compared with 574 in 2009), just edging out rival Boeing’s total orders for 625 airliners last year. Among the European airframer’s orders was its 10,000th, which formed part of a deal for 60 A320 narrowbodies for Virgin America–30 of which will be the new re-engined A320Neo model with its promised 15-percent reduction in fuel burn. Virgin signed its contract on December 29, but Airbus waited for today’s annual press conference to announce it. Airbus claimed to hold 51 percent of the world market for airliners with 100 or more passenger seats last year.
Airbus CEO Tom Enders reported that 2010 had not “been a bad year” for the company, while acknowledging that it still faces a struggle to restore profitability in the face of inflated production costs and a disadvantaged exchange rate. He claimed that Airbus has “significantly” surpassed the cost-reduction goals it has set itself through the Power 8 and Power 8 Plus programs.
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