But Boeing Still Has Net Order Lead

It ain't over 'til it's over... but, yeah, it's probably over. Fueled by a large surge in orders from China, Airbus lays claim to 1,204 gross orders for its planes in 2007, 50 more than rival Boeing... but, for the moment anyway, the American planemaker has the lead in net orders.

According to the Seattle Times, Boeing has a net order total of 1,144 when cancellations and substitutions are factored in. Airbus -- which doesn't publish net order figures, so the Times had to do the math -- has 1,095 net orders for 2007.

The difference in the Airbus numbers comes in large part from last month's 160-plane commitment from China... many of which haven't been finalized, though they likely will be by year's end. Curiously, neither planemaker has yet included the 100-plane deals each announced during the Dubai Air Show, from DAE Capital.

Despite the last-minute suspense, it's a safe bet Airbus will come out way ahead for 2007 -- a point Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Scott Carson conceded recently. Don't feel too bad for Boeing, though -- as ANN reported, 2007 is already a record year for the planemaker.

And remember, there are still 19 days left in the year... and anything can happen. In an interview published Monday, Louis Gallois -- CEO of Airbus parent EADS -- predicts Airbus's final sales number for the year will be 1,300 airplanes.

In the interview, conducted by a German newspaper and quoted by Reuters, Gallois added that prices this year have been better-than-expected in the face of tough competition from Boeing.

Gallois also put to rest the long debate about a need for more capital at Airbus. He said EADS will have a net cash position of $4.5 billion euros, equivalent to $6.6 billion US, at year's end, and a positive free cash flow this year.

FMI: www.boeing.com, www.airbus.com