FARNBOROUGH, England, July 21 (AFP) - Airbus and Boeing snared two more big deals here Wednesday with announcements that Turkish Airlines intends to buy 51 planes for an estimated total of 3.9 billion dollars, most of which would go to Airbus.
The deals were first disclosed by Turkey`s Anatolia news agency, which reported that Turkish Airlines (THY) in a statement to the Turkish stock exchange said its executive board decided Tuesday to buy five Airbus A330/200 planes to meet a need for long-range aircraft.
The carrier also intended to purchase 12 A321/200s and 19 A320/200s as mid-range planes, the statement said.
From Boeing, Turkish Airlines planned to acquire 15 B737/800s to serve its mid-range needs, it added.
The deals were later confirmed here by spokesmen for Airbus and Boeing.
"Airbus signed a memorandum of understanding with Turkish Airlines for the purchase of five A330/200s, 12 A321s and 19 A320s," Airbus spokesman Philippe Delmas said, adding the deal could be worth more than three billion dollars to the company.
Boeing confirmed it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Turkish Airlines for the purchase of 15 737-800 jetliners for a theoretical price of 900 million dollars.
A Boeing spokesman at the Farnborough air show told Agence France-Presse the final order would be signed by the end of the summer.
The announcements Wednesday give Airbus a significant edge over Boeing at the show here, coming after a 36-plane deal disclosed Tuesday worth seven billion dollars from Abu Dhabi`s Etihad Airways.
The United Arab Emirates national carrier said it planned to order 24 Airbus aircraft, including four of the superjumbo A380 models, and would take options on a further 12. Without the options the transaction has a list price of 4.5 billion dollars.
The deal eclipsed one announced by Boeing on Monday with Dubai-based Emirates for four 777-300ERs and options on nine more in a deal worth up to 2.96 billion dollars.
The two aerospace giants have been trading blows at the Farnborough air show near London this week, a traditional battleground for aviation companies going head-to-head for orders and publicity.
The purchasing plans announced by Turkish Airlines are part of the largely state-owned carrier`s efforts to renew its aging fleet, which currently totals 65 planes.
THY spokesman Recep Duvelioglu said that in addition to the purchases, the company would terminate the contracts of some of its leased aircraft and lease other planes.
"We are planning to increase our fleet up to 100 planes by the end of 2005," he told AFP.
The THY announcement came during an official visit by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to France during which the Airbus deal was discussed.
The office of French President Jacques Chirac said Tuesday that the deal with Airbus was being finalised.
THY, which is set for large-scale privatization, flew 10.4 million passengers to 103 destinations in 2003, posting a profit of roughly 147 million dollars.