AIRBUS GETS 23 ORDERS FOR CORPORATE JETS

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 20 (Bernama) -- Airbus has received 23 firm orders worth
more than US$3 billion (US$1=RM3.57) for its corporate jetliners, an official
said Tuesday.

The group's marketing director for executive and private aviation, David
Velupillai, said the orders comprised 14 single-aisle and nine wide-bodied jets.

"In addition to offering customers the world's most modern aircraft, we have
the widest spread of aircraft sizes, allowing us to give the customers the
comfort that they want in the sizes they need," he told a media briefing here
Tuesday.

Velupillai is here for a two-day World Business Jet Conference.

He said last year's order was lower than the 38 units (31 single-aisle and
seven wide-bodied) sold in 2007.

"2007 was a peak year for everybody. But so far the market for corporate
jets has remained resilient," he said.

Since the segment's inception in the mid 1980s, Airbus has sold 150
corporate jets of which 100 were single-aisle (A318 Elite, A320 Prestige and the
ACJ) and the rest wide-bodied.

Of these, he said, about 100 units had been delivered.

"About three-quarter of our clients are corporates and individuals," he
said.

Velupillai said in Asia, Airbus has sold 20 aircraft including China
Sonangol, Royal Thai Air Force, Skytraders and the UB Group of India.

"The number of the larger corporate jets in Asia is growing with 50 percent
increase in only eight years since 2000. We are hoping to tap this market," he
said.

He said Asia was certainly an important growth market for Airbus as it
formed a group of economies with a strong growth.

"We see a lot of potential for corporate jets in Asia especially with the
big cities separated by long distances," he said, adding that China was their
biggest market in the region.

Given the current uncertainty in world economy, he said, billionaires would
continue to buy the jets to assist them in getting things done.

"The billionaires still have a need for corporate jets as they give them the
eight-day week. And often, they use the aircraft to be more productive," he
said.

Velupillai said Airbus would also step up its awareness campaign in Asia as
they remained cautiously optimistic that the corporate jet market would weather
the tough times.

-- BERNAMA