Airbus confident on Mideast orders

Airbus says it is on track to secure orders for well over 50 passenger jets from Middle Eastern and North African airlines this year.

The European planemaker’s president for the Middle East, Habib Fekih, said the recovery in the region is “faster than expected.” He added: “Traffic is growing, demand is back.”

Business from the region’s airlines has been picking up since last year when the global economic downturn hit air travel and forced some carriers to scale back their expansion plans.

Competition is fierce between Airbus and its US rival Boeing for sales to fast-growing Middle Eastern airlines, which so far this year have ordered 48 aircraft from Airbus although last week a Dubai leasing company did cancel 2.26 billion euros worth of planes.

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