Aircraft Earns New Sales Thanks To Freighter Variant, Wait For A350 XWB

EADS reports sales and deliveries for the Airbus A330 -- on which the A330 Tanker aircraft is based -- continue to grow at a brisk pace, with an expanding order volume and sustained deliveries to operators around the world.

After a downturn in orders over the past two years -- as several airlines looked to the larger Boeing 777 for their twin-engine, long-haul aircraft needs -- the A330 has seen a resurgence for 2007, racking up 112 new orders through the first six months of the year.

Much of that rebound comes thanks to the recently-introduced A330-200F Freighter, which accounts for 64 of those orders. Several carriers have also ordered A330s as "filler" aircraft, to tide them over until the A350 XWB is ready in 2013.

Still, a sale is a sale is a sale... and EADS notes the new orders will keep the A330 line running for a long time to come.

Through the end of June, a total of 786 A330s were on order, of which 481 have been delivered. The most recent A330 deliveries included aircraft for Northwest Airlines, Qatar Airways, China Eastern Airlines, Etihad Airways, Qantas Airways and Aer Lingus.

FMI: www.eads.com, www.airbus.com