Airbus gets 102-airplane order from China

China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS) has signed with Airbus for a total of 102 aircraft of which 66 are new orders. The new orders comprise 50 A320 Family aircraft, six A330s and ten A350 XWBs.

The agreement was signed November 4 by Li Hai, president of CAS, and Tom Enders, president and CEO of Airbus, at the Elysée Palace in Paris, in the presence of visiting Chinese president Hu Jintao, French president Nicolas Sarkozy, United Kingdom minister for industry Mark Prisk and Louis Gallois, CEO of EADS.

“We feel privileged that China continues to choose Airbus aircraft for the further development of its fleet. The order for Airbus’ eco-efficient aircraft underlines China’s ambition to grow sustainably," said Enders. “We look forward to many more years of continued cooperation.”

Airbus entered the Chinese market in 1985, when an A310 was first delivered to today’s China Eastern Airlines. By the end of October 2010, the Airbus in service fleet in China has risen to 637 aircraft representing 43 percent of the total. China has ordered by end of October in total 738 aircraft directly from Airbus.