AIRBUS BAGS RECORD US$50b DEAL IN DUBAI
US investor Indigo to buy 430 A320neo line
DUBAI
AIRBUS SE announced the biggest commercial-plane deal in its history, securing an order valued at nearly US$50 billion (RM209 billion) for 430 planes from its single-aisle A320neo line.
The pact with United States investor Indigo Partners gives Airbus the upper hand at the Dubai Air Show, where it has been trailing Boeing Co in orders.
It’s also a crowning achievement for Airbus sales chief John Leahy, who is set to retire after a multi-decade career in which he had struck deals for thousands of jets and lifted the European planemaker into a duopoly position with its rival.
For Indigo Partners, led by Bill Franke, the Airbus accord provided upgraded narrow-body aircraft to boost the fleets of lowcost carriers from Denver to Budapest.
The planes will go to four companies in Indigo’s investment portfolio: Frontier Airlines, Mexico’s Volaris, European operator Wizz Air Holdings Plc and upstart JetSmart, which began operating this year in Chile.
The deal featured 273 A320neo jets together with 157 of the larger A321neo variant and was worth US$49.5 billion before customary discounts, said Airbus.
Leahy called the transaction “remarkable”, while Franke, who co-founded Indigo in 2002, said it underscored his confidence in the A320 and the bargain fared, no-frills travel model he helped develop.
Even with the massive haul from Indigo, Airbus may not be done at the Dubai event.
Other mooted orders might still materialise, said people familiar with the matter, including an accord with EgyptAir Airlines Co for A320neos and one with discount carrier flydubai.
The latter was weighing an order for as many as 175 narrowbody planes that could be split between the A321neo and Boeing’s 737 Max.
The Indigo deal more than doubled Airbus’ previous order book for the year, which stood at about 290 aircraft as of October 31, pushing the planemaker’s backlog above 7,000 jets and reversed expectations that orders would trail deliveries this year.
Meanwhile, Boeing yesterday announced an order from Gulf airline flydubai for 225 medium-haul 737 MAX aircraft with a list price of US$27 billion, hailing it as the “largest-ever single-aisle jet order” from a Middle East carrier.
The agreement with flydubai consists of a commitment for 175 MAX aircraft, and purchase rights for 50 additional MAXs. Agencies