ightglobal.com 11-17 June 2019 | Flight International | 35
PARIS
Widebody rivalryThe 787, a successor to the 767, slotted in
below the 777 with a mission to banish Air-
bus’s strong-selling original A330 family into
obsolescence. Airbus’s indecision had cost it a
lot of ground to its rival, and the new XWB
family was sized in a bid to put the 777 out of
business, while also giving Toulouse a weap-
on to compete with the larger 787 variants.
Meanwhile, tactical pricing could ensure the
A330 disrupted Boeing’s 787 efforts.
So this analysis examines the comparative
fortunes of the A350 and 787 with respect to
their similarities in concept, rather than them
being direct competitors.
Highlighting the potentially complementary
aspects of their designs, data from Cirium’s
Fleets Analyzer shows seven airlines operating
both types, with a further 12 due to do likewise,
based on current order backlogs.
Both types have had complex evolutions
for different reasons but between them they
now account for 1,100 in-service aircraft and
more than 2,300 orders.
Although the XWB launch came some two
years after the 787, commitments secured for
the earlier “A350” were migrated, providing
the new programme with a solid commercial
start. Fleets Analyzer data shows the two pro-
grammes had similar sales success during
their early years after launch. By the end of
year three from year of launch, net orders for
each type were in the 440-480 range – the
A350 on 478 and the 787 on 448.
In years four to seven the Dreamliner pow-
ered away from its rival, racking up 847 net
orders, while the A350 struggled to get much
variants. Airbus had in fact not sold any -800s
since 2009, and the decision to launch the
A330neo in 2014 provided a viable alterna-
tive in Toulouse’s product line-up.
A350 net orders have gradually risen to
slightly below 900 as of April 2019, while
sales of the 787 have powered on to 1,431 net
orders. So overall, the 787 has a 62% share of
the combined orderbook.
From a delivery perspective, the 787 has
achieved an impressive production trajectory
since reaching its stride. Deliveries of the 787
began from Everett in 2011, while the first
A350 was handed over by Airbus in 2014.
Overall, the 787 accounts for three-quarters of
the 1,100 combined deliveries to date.
Shipment of 787s passed the 100 mark dur-
ing year three, by which time a second line
had come on stream in North Charleston,
South Carolina. The 500th 787 was delivered
in year seven and now more than 830 have
been built, with production across the two as-
sembly plants just completing a rise from 12
Aviation Images/Shutterstock to 14 per month.“The A350 is gaining a lot of
support from the customer
community... I think the
future is ours”
Guillaume Faury
Chief executive, Airbus
0%5%10%15%20%25%30%35%40%Asia-Pacific Europe Middle East North America Africa Latin America UnassignedPercentageSource: Cirium's Fleets Analyzer *Proportion of total orders for type
Airbus A350 Boeing 787Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 – share of orderbooks by region*0%10%20%30%40%50%60%Asia-PacificEurope Middle East North America Latin America AfricaPercentageSource: Cirium's Fleets Analyzer *Proportion of total deliveries for type
Airbus A350 Boeing 787Airbus A350 and Boeing 787 – share of deliveries by region*❯❯beyond 580. The fortunes reversed as a sales
flurry for Toulouse took the A350 to more
than 800 net orders in year eight, while the
787 entered a three-year flatline.
Deliveries of the two types occurred at
similar points, the 787 in its eighth year from
launch and the XWB in its ninth. Both were
later than planned at go-ahead, but the 787
suffered the most severe delay when an al-
ready ambitious test timetable went into
limbo due to multiple production and devel-
opment issues. This delay was unprecedent-
ed in modern times, with more than four
years passing between roll-out of the first 787
in July 2007 and the start of deliveries in
September 2011.SLOW GOING
Since net orders for the A350 passed the 800
mark in year eight (2012), incremental growth
has been a struggle. This is partly the result of
the shelving in 2014 of the smallest family
member, the A350-800, with some orders can-
celled while others transferred to the larger