Airbus delivered 41 single-aisle and widebody jetliners in October – including the first A380 to Air France, and booked new orders for an A318 and an A330-200 during the month.

The delivery highlight was Airbus’ handover of Air France’s initial A380, which makes this carrier the first European airline to receive the 21^st century flagship aircraft.  Its service start-up in November on the Paris-New York route will inaugurate A380 operations between Europe and the Americas.

Other widebody deliveries during October were four A330-200s (received by Afriqiyah Airways, Air Mauritius, AERCAP for Garuda Indonesia, and AWAS for Oman Air), and three A330-300s (to AERCAP for Aeroflot, to CIT Leasing for Asiana, and to Oman Air).

Highlights of the October activity also included the delivery of Saudi Arabian Airlines’ (Saudia) first A320 directly bought from Airbus, along with an A320 received by this carrier under a long term lease agreement with ALAFCO – making Saudia a new operator of the aircraft type as part of an ambitious fleet modernisation plan.

Overall, a total of 33 single-aisle Airbus jetliners were delivered in October, consisting of seven A319s, 19 A320s, and seven A321s. 

The month’s new orders were for an A318 acquired by a private customer and an A330-200 for CIT Leasing.