Story ID: 359
Airbus Helicopters' Orders Surge, Deliveries Fall
By: Mark Huber
Caption: Orders are up, but deliveries are down for Airbus Helicopters in 2018. 
Word Count: 204
Airbus Helicopters (Booth C305) posted an 18 percent year-over-year gross order increase in 2018, but rotorcraft deliveries fell by 53 units over the same span, to 356. For the year, the company logged gross orders for 413 helicopters (net 381), up from 350 gross orders in 2017. Bookings included orders for 148 H135/H145 twins and 15 more orders for new H160s, boosting the company’s overall backlog to 717 helicopters.

Deliveries in 2018 included the first of 100 H135s for China in Qingdao, where a new, dedicated final assembly line has been established for that model. Also in 2018, Hong Kong’s Government Flying Service took delivery of the first H175s in public-services configuration.

“Our commercial performance in 2018 demonstrates the resilience we have developed as a company to help us navigate what remains a challenging environment,” said Airbus Helicopters CEO Bruno Even. He also noted that the company had increased its share of the military market in 2018 with orders for H225s and NH90s, including two large orders from Qatar and Spain for the latter for a combined 51 helicopters. “These positive trends give us the means to prepare the future and continue our transformation,” Even said.
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