Orders Exceed Planemaker's Expectations, Including 32
A380s
The European planemaker Airbus says 2010 was a record year for
deliveries of aircraft, with 510 commercial aircraft handed over to
94 customers, 19 of which were new. Deliveries included 401 A320
Family aircraft, 91 A330/A340s and 18 A380s. In its military
division, Airbus delivered 20 light and medium military and
transport aircraft (CN235 and C295), exceeding the 2009 figure by
four aircraft.
Airbus booked 644 commercial aircraft orders (574 net) in 2010.
The value of the new orders surpassed $84 billion gross ($74
billion net) at list prices. This represents 51 per cent by units
of the 2010 gross worldwide market share of aircraft beyond 100
seats. Airbus won 21 new orders for its military aircraft, the
CN235 and C295.
The new commercial orders include 452 A320 Family aircraft, 160
A330/A340/A350 XWB Family aircraft, and 32 new orders for the A380.
At 2010 year end, Airbus’ commercial order book backlog was
3,552 aircraft valued at over US$480 billion at list prices, or
equalling six years of full production. The military backlog stood
at 247 aircraft.
A320neo
Airbus also launched the A320neo (new engine option) in 2010,
which is estimated to burn 15 per cent less fuel. That would be
equivalent to a saving of up to 3,600 tonnes of CO2 emissions per
aircraft per year.
Total orders for the A350 XWB climbed to 583, and number of
customers to 36, by year end. On the industrial side, 2010 saw the
start of manufacturing of the first A350 XWB components and sub
assemblies at section level. The systems test rig (Iron Bird) for
the A350 XWB started operations in December.
A400M
The A400M program is delivering results with four development
aircraft flying. It accomplished more than 1,000 flight hours in
over 300 test flights. Start of A400M series production is imminent
and civil certification is planned to be obtained before the end of
the year. The A330-based Multi-Role Tanker Transport (MRTT)
aircraft achieved civil and military certification in 2010. Five
are flying with a further four undergoing conversion. Delivery of
the first two MRTTs to the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) is in
the final stages.
The company says that progress in the A380 program has allowed
the company to reduce the temporary workforce considerably.
However, hundreds of temporary positions were turned into full-time
Airbus contracts creating a large number of new jobs in particular
in Engineering and Production. In 2010, Airbus recruited 2,200 new
employees, bringing the active workforce up to 52,500 by year end.
For 2011 it is planned to hire up to 3,000 people, in particular
for the ramp-up of the single aisle and long range programmes as
well as development and industrialisation of the A400M, A350 XWB
and the A320neo.
A380
"2010 was a good year, in fact better than expected twelve
months ago. The market rebound and improved programme performance
has been particularly encouraging. However, with plenty of
challenges, especially in our development programmes, we’ll
have to work hard to further improve and also make 2011 a
successful year for Airbus,” said Tom Enders, Airbus
President and CEO.
Also in 2010, Airbus played a role in the commercialization of
alternative fuels by establishing the first value chain in Brazil,
bringing together farmers, refiners and airlines. Airbus completed
Latin America’s first bio-fuel flight, and Airbus is also
supporting the world’s first scheduled daily bio-fuel
passenger flights due to begin in 2011. This underlines Airbus
strategy to advance from demonstration flights towards the
commercialization of alternative fuels for aviation.
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