Boeing sells 30 jets to Emirates
EMIRATES will order 30 new Boeing 777 aircraft in a deal worth more than $7bn (£4.6bn).
The contract will be unveiled at the Farnborough Air Show, which starts today. It follows a period of rapid expansion for the Dubai-based airline, which last month ordered 32 Airbus A380 superjumbo jets, worth around $115bn.
The deal will be welcomed by Boeing bosses still smarting from the firm’s 787 “Dreamliner” project, which crawled into the UK several years overdue – and billions of pounds over budget.
The industry showpiece at Farnborough will see a bonanza of aircraft sales, with Boeing rival Airbus expected to shift at least 100 planes during the week long event.
Boeing says its defence business expects moderate growth in revenue next year after relatively flat results in 2010. It announced yesterday its defence revenue will be bolstered by international sales of existing planes, as well as expansion into adjacent markets such as unmanned vehicles.
The firm has been badly hit by the cancellation of several major military projects by the Pentagon. It is now locked in a fierce bidding war with EADS and a team including Ukraine’s Antonov, for a lucrative contract to build 179 refuelling tankers for the US Air Force.