This photo released by Emirates Airlines on Nov. 5, 2015 shows people equipped with jet wings flying with an Airbus A380 aircraft over the sky of Dubai, United Arab Emarites. (Photo: Xinhua)
European aircraft producer Airbus announced Tuesday that it has achieved a record of 635 aircraft deliveries for 85 customers in the world, rising for the 13th year in a row, surpassing the 629 aircraft deliveries in 2014.
Airbus said its deliveries in 2015 comprised 491 A320 Family aircraft, 103 A330s, 27 A380s, and 14 A350 XWBs, and it achieved in the same year 1,036 net orders from 53 customers of the world, comprising 897 single-aisle aircraft and 139 widebodies.
The aircraft production giant said also that its overall backlog had climbed to a new industry record of 6,787 aircraft valued at 996.3 billion U.S. dollars at list prices in 2015.
Fabrice Bregier, Airbus president and CEO, said: "This commercial and industrial performance unequivocally proves that global demand for our aircraft has remained resilient," adding that "in 2015 Airbus has also laid firm foundations for the future, increasing the capability and variety of the aircraft which we can offer to our customers."
Another notable highlight for Airbus in 2015 was the official opening of the first Airbus factory in the United States, at Mobile on Alabama's Gulf Coast, where between 40 and 50 A320 Family aircraft will be produced annually by 2018. And in China, a deal has also been signed for launching a new A330 completion and delivery center in Tianjin during 2016, which would help Airbus smooth its transition towards the A330neo.
Headquartered in Toulouse, France, Airbus employs some 55,000 people. It has sold over 16,300 aircraft to around 400 customers worldwide. Airbus has design and manufacturing facilities in France, Germany, the UK, and Spain, as well as subsidiaries in the United States, China, Japan, India and in the Middle East.
