Story ID: 3GPsalesdeliveries06052014
Narrowbodies Monopolize May Jetliner Sales
By: Gregory Polek
Caption: Boeing and Airbus collected orders for a total of 169 narrowbodies during the month of May.
Word Count: 285
Sales of single-aisle airplanes completely filled the May order books for both Airbus and Boeing this year, increasing narrowbody backlogs for both companies despite feverish production activity. The European airframer added 70 aircraft to its order book in May through transactions with both airline customers and leasing companies for its A320 product line, while the U.S. manufacturer drew orders for ninety-nine 737s, primarily from unidentified customers. Through the first five months of the year Airbus reports a net order count of 203 while Boeing has logged 394.

For Airbus, an agreement with Singapore's Tigerair for 37 A320neos to provide future fleet renewal and growth in operations across its Asia-Pacific route network led all May bookings. Meanwhile, Royal Brunei Airlines ordered seven A320neos for use on its regional network linking the Sultanate of Brunei’s capital and largest city, Bandar Seri Begawan, with destinations across Asia. The deals marked the first Neo orders from Royal Brunei and Tigerair, both existing customers for the A320ceo (current engine option) series.         

For Boeing, a deal for thirty 737Max jets and twenty 737-800NGs with unidentified customers represented the bulk of the order intake for the month, while the new Eastern Airlines of the U.S. ordered ten 737-800s, Thailand’s Nok Air committed to seven Maxs and eight 737-800s and Japan TransOcean Air took another six -800NGs. 

Airbus delivered 45 A320-series aircraft, six A330s and four A380s in May.  At month-end, the combined total of Airbus deliveries in 2014 stood at 248 jetliners to 64 customers. Boeing, meanwhile, delivered thirty-nine 737s, seven 787-8s and eight 777s, raising its total for the year to 271 airplanes to 69 customers.