Airbus sees 50 new orders for A350 by mid-June, 100 by end-2005

TOULOUSE, France - The European aircraft maker Airbus expects to have 50 orders for its new A350 passenger jet between now and mid-June and 100 by the end of the year, Airbus chief executive Noel Forgeard said Wednesday.
Forgeard, speaking at a news conference at the Toulouse-Blagnac airport in southwestern France moments after the company's super-jumbo A380 took off on its maiden flight, responded to a queston about the number of orders expected for the new A350, which is to challenge Boeing's forthcoming 787 Dreamliner.
"I expect 50 at Le Bourget", the airport where the Paris Air Show is scheduled on June 13-19, and "at least 100 by year-end," Forgeard said.
In the market for planes of this size -- twin-engine, long-haul aircraft with average capacity like the Airbus A330s -- "Airbus has been the leader for many years," he noted.
Airbus announced in December 2004 the A350 program, months after Boeing's launch of its own project to build the fuel-efficient 787 Dreamliner.
"The battle in the mid-size aircraft is fierce. This is just the beginning of this new battle," the Airbus CEO said.

04/27/2005 11:06 GMT