European aircraft maker Airbus on Monday released sales results for its 2017 fiscal year. The company delivered a record 718 new commercial jets and booked 1,109 net new orders for the year. The book-to-bill ratio reached 1.5, well above Boeing Co.’s (NYSE: BA) book-to-bill of 1.2.
The 2017 total includes 558 single-aisle A320 Family (181 A320neos), 67 A330s, 78 A350 XWBs and 15 A380s. The 1,109 net orders came from 44 customers, and the company ended the year with an overall backlog of 7,265 aircraft valued at US$1.06 trillion at list prices. (Boeing’s backlog is valued at the actual contract price and has about half the value of Airbus’s. Beginning this year new international accounting rules will require Airbus to value its backlog in the same way Boeing now does.)
Airbus has lost a top executive and loses two more in the next 15 months. First to go was sales chief John Leahy who retired. Next to go will be commercial aircraft chief operating officer and president of Commercial Aircraft Fabrice Brégier, who leaves next month. CEO Tom Enders indicated in December that he will not seek an extension to his contract when it expires in April 2019. Guillaume Faury will replace Brégier, and Leahy’s replacement is Eric Schulz.
The company pulled off its biggest-ever order at the Dubai Air Show in November. Private equity firm Indigo Partners, on behalf of four of its airlines, placed an order for 430 A320s. The order was finalized in December. Without it, the company’s book-to-bill would have been less than one.
In addition to its orders and deliveries, the company also posted its 2018 price list. The new pricing includes a 2% increase across the entire product line. Discounts of 30% to more than 50% of the list price are common for both Airbus and Boeing. Here’s the price list by model:
- A318: $77.4 million
- A319: $92.3 million
- A320: $101 million
- A321: $118.3 million
- A319neo: $101.5 million
- A320neo: $110.6 million
- A321neo: $129.5 million
- A330-200 $238.5 million
- A330-800(neo): $259.9 million
- A330-200 Freighter: $241.7 million
- A330-300: $264.2 million
- A330-900(neo): $296.4 million
- A350-800: $280.6 million
- A350-900: $317.4 million
- A350-1000: $366.5 million
- A380: $445.6 million
One final note: Airbus made it abundantly clear that it will cease production of the A380 unless the single customer pushing for a new version of the plane (the UAE’s Emirates) places orders that maintain a production rate over a minimum of six per year until 2030. Airbus plans to build 12 of the superjumbo double-deckers this year and eight next year. According to Leeham News, Brégier said:
From 2020 it would be possible to keep the program running with an acceptable industrial result at a minimum rate of six aircraft per year. The orders for these aircraft would have to come from Emirates, as other airline orders would be marginal.
Boeing delivered its own record of 763 new commercial jets last year.
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