Airbus has roared back into contention in the unofficial race to be this year’s biggest aircraft seller, with a burst of orders at the Paris Air Show.

Airbus orders, including commitments, tallied 339 aircraft valued at $45.7 billion at list prices, and more is set to come, according to the Centre of Asia-Pacific Aviation.

Additional A380 commitments were placed by Emirates (eight for a total of 55), Qatar (three for a total of five) and Air France (two for a total of 12), while other models, including the A350, also racked up significant orders.

Including deals announced on Monday, Airbus has now taken firm orders this year for approximately 420 aircraft, compared with Boeing’s 435, according to a Dow Jones forecast. The European manufacturer now predicts a delivery rate of 500 aircraft per year by 2010, (up from 440-450 this year). A320 production would be ramped up to 40 A320s per month by the end of the decade.

Meanwhile, Boeing CEO, Scott Carson, stated he does not expect a replacement for its B737 programme for at least seven to eight years, “but it will depend on technology and demand”. The manufacturer could be expected to leverage its five-year midsize widebody development gap between the B787 and A350 to offer a new narrowbody model ahead of Airbus.

Boeing announced orders for 46 aircraft yesterday, including another 40 B737-900ERs for Indonesia’s Lion Air, which is planning a major Asian expansion in coming years, as Garuda Indonesia’s international operations continue to shrink.

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