The importance of Gulf aviation to the world's two largest aircraft manufacturers (see news, November 11) was amply demonstrated today.
Emirates stunned the aviation world this morning when it placed orders worth US$99 billion with both Airbus and Boeing.
The order, announced at the Dubai Air Show, means that local carrier Emirates will be spending $76 billion on no fewer than 150 of the next generation B777X plus a further $23 billion with Airbus for 50 of its A380 superjumbos.
Next comes Etihad, Abu Dhabi's national carrier, which is spending around $50 billion on new Airbus and Boeing passenger planes. The order comprises 50 of the forthcoming A350 (Airbus' rival to the B777X and B787) plus 36 of a newer A320 version. It is also buying 25 B777Xs plus an additional 30 B787s.
Not to be left behind is Qatar Airways of Doha. It ordered 51 B777Xs but the value of the deal is unknown at the time of writing.
And finally, low-cost airline Fly Dubai has ordered over 100 short-haul B737s in a deal valued at $11 billion.
Consultant John Strickland told Business Traveller: "These orders underline the strategic importance of the Gulf carriers both to the manufacturers and the 21st century aviation scene."
It also means that the world's traditional air shows in Farnborough and Paris risk becoming less important in future years. If the aircraft manufacturers can make all their money in Dubai why bother to try so hard elsewhere? It means that Farnborough and Paris might become more like networking events than serious air shows.
But what does it mean for passengers? Well, travellers booking B777 economy class flights are going to have to get used to 10-across configurations.
The B777X, which won't enter service until around 2020, is an updated version of the existing B777. Boeing has engineered the existing cabin (both B777 and B777X have the same fuselage widths) to make the ten-across layout more palatable for economy passengers.
What about the A380? News from the show suggests that 11-across economy layouts (see news, November 6) have moved a step closer.
Emirates would look to a 3-5-3 configuration on the A380's economy main deck cabin.
The carrier's president Tim Clark said a decision is likely to come. He told Aviation Week: "I am sure Airbus is going to persuade us to do it."
Emirates wishes to ensure that 11-across seating maintains Airbus advertised industry standard of having seats which are 18 ins wide. Much work will have to be done but it could mean that, while the seats keep the same width, the aisles and armrests could be narrower.
Moving to 11-across would mean an Emirates A380 would be able to carry an additional 40 passengers. And from Airbus' point of view that can only be a good thing as it would make the A380 more economical to operate in the face of ever fiercer competition from Boeing's cheaper to purchase B777 and B777X.
Alex McWhirter
