Airbus humps Boeing into submission at Paris airshow

[scooterscot]

BBC News - Airbus and IndiGo confirm record deal for 180 aircraft

Airbus and IndiGo confirm record deal for 180 aircraft

23 June 2011 Last updated at 08:21 GMT The IndiGo order is the biggest ever in terms of aircraft numbers - but may soon be topped
Airbus piled up the orders at the Paris Air Show as it confirmed the largest single order of aircraft in aviation history.

Indian budget airline IndiGo is buying 180 planes from Airbus worth about $15.6bn (£9.7bn) at list prices.

The deal is for 150 of Airbus' new fuel efficient A320neo jets and 30 A320s.

Airbus, owned by EADS, has left rival Boeing far behind in terms of orders at the event, as high fuel costs increase the demand for fuel efficient aircraft.

The company estimates it has sold more than 700 A320neo jets so far.

Airbus' success leaves Boeing with a very tough dilemma, our correspondent at the air show says.

The US planemaker's A320 rival is the 737, but the plane is very low, so fitting modern, fuel-efficient engines under its wings would be a tight squeeze.

Making it happen would require a new undercarriage, which is costly and difficult, as well as time-consuming, he says.

[Fred Bloggs]

All we need now is a bigger slice of the work from the Frogs. You'd think that with a chocolate £ melting fast that UK manufacturing would be very attractive to Airbus, more than ever before.

[scooterscot]

All we need now is a bigger slice of the work from the Frogs. You'd think that with a chocolate £ melting fast that UK manufacturing would be very attractive to Airbus, more than ever before.

Yes because engineers are pouring out of every corner. We're don't have anywhere in the UK to make stuff and things, like.

The engineers have spoken and voted with their feet long ago. Being an engineer in the UK is a demeaning experience. More importantly our skills are portable.

[doodab]

Being in the UK is a demeaning experience.

FTFY

[PAH]

Great, so it will become harder and harder to avoid Airbus and their dodgy fly-by-wire glass cockpits.

Maybe I'm being paranoid, but since that very public A320 crash I've felt this is a step too far in reliance on technology. I'd much rather have a pissed up captain at the manual controls.

Here's the video of the A320 airshow crash I'm on about. I'm sure many people remember seeing it on the news:

YouTube - ‪France - Mulhouse - Airbus A320 Crash during auto landing‬‏


Though thinking about it, maybe the common denominator is Air France, seeing as the two most famous Airbus crashes (the one I mention and the one that disappeared into the atlantic in 2009) have been from their stable.

[doodab]

Avionics Products Range

Anybody on here want to own up?

[gingerjedi]

Yes because engineers are pouring out of every corner. We're don't have anywhere in the UK to make stuff and things, like.

The engineers have spoken and voted with their feet long ago. Being an engineer in the UK is a demeaning experience. More importantly our skills are portable.

Bristol, the UK hub of aerospace engineering excellence.

You're right though, they're on a continual recruitment drive for stress and materials engineers which explains the increase in the number of Bobs at Airbus and Rolls Royce Filton these days.

I know what I’ll be encouraging my kids to get into.

[TimberWolf]

Anyone been up in an A380 yet? How's that selling?

[scooterscot]

Great, so it will become harder and harder to avoid Airbus and their dodgy fly-by-wire glass cockpits.

Maybe I'm being paranoid, but since that very public A320 crash I've felt this is a step too far in reliance on technology. I'd much rather have a pissed up captain at the manual controls.

Here's the video of the A320 airshow crash I'm on about. I'm sure many people remember seeing it on the news:

YouTube - ‪France - Mulhouse - Airbus A320 Crash during auto landing‬‏

Pilot error all the way.

[scooterscot]

Bristol, the UK hub of aerospace engineering excellence.

Ah yes, British WasteOfSpace as it's now commonly become known among the engineering fraternity. Ever since Airbus pulled the jollys out 10 years ago we left. You know they used to have their own private A320 flying engineers over to Toulouse on a daily basis, business class seats, it was fantastic you felt quite important.

You're right though, they're on a continual recruitment drive for stress and materials engineers which explains the increase in the number of Bobs at Airbus and Rolls Royce Filton these days.

The UK agents make it perfectly clear to me every time they call, you're a commodity long before you're an engineer / professional. Until this stops UK companies shall never be competitive attracting the skills alongside the eurodisney counterparts.

I know what I’ll be encouraging my kids to get into.

And while you're kids are studying engineering get them to learn French or German at the same time. Stand out from the crowd when it grows.